Strength and Sacrifice
by Mo Eazy
Summary: Yang JunKyu is a gentle man in a rough job. As missions take their toll on Uruz 9, he is assigned to protect a girl under Mithril care in Australia, but not all is as it seems...
1. Therapy

Notes: I keep forgetting to add these things, but obviously I don't own the show blah blah blah...kind of obvious isn't it? Also, please note that while yes I realise that the De Danaan is a member of the West Pacific Fleet, it has been shown during the course of the series to wander from this area of operations. I am simply assuming that they are picking up the slack for the Atlantic fleet, which may be busy quelling some other warzone. PLEASE read and review, I love it even when it's harsh. I can't become a better writer without some constructive criticism. Not that I don't appreciate praise.

**_Merida Island_**

"You were in Sierra Leone for six days, correct?" The medical officer asked. He was in his late forties with a bald head and leathery skin, crow's feet peeking out from the edge of his spectacles. Across from him was his newest patient, a young man by the name of Yang Jun-Kyu.

The patient had short black hair and boyishly handsome features. He had a lean, athletic figure. If somewhat on the short side as Special Forces operators go, standing at only five feet nine inches. Mr. Jun-Kyu looked barely out of his teens even though he was a strapping twenty four years old. Dr. Anthony Fischer was reminded again of his glory days in the United States Air Force, before his eyesight went south and forced him to retire.

"Yes sir." Replied the corporal from where he lay on the therapist recliner. The corporal wore standard issue Mithril fatigues, although the collar was undone to show some of the white shirt beneath. Relaxed dress was a perk for the Special Response Team.

On his lap, Dr. Fischer made a note in the thick manila folder spread across his lap. In it were Yang's medical records, history, service record, officer reports and a notepad for the Doctor to make notes on. Dr. Fischer wrote down a note concerning the sterile tone with which Yang had responded to his query.

Above the note made were several others:

**Patient shows visual signs of depression: Loose posture and facial features, lack of emotion and conviction in response to questions. Lack of eye contact and disinterest in one's surroundings. Slow movements.**

**Patient saluted and exchanged greetings but I had to make first contact. Patient's responses are unenthusiastic, brief and unconcerned.**

**Patient responded to the opening source of trauma in a reserved manner, not elaborating and implying that he does not want to discuss the events of August 12****th****, 2008.**

Taking a deep breath, Dr. Fischer picked up a small photograph taken of Mr. Jun-Kyu during basic training. It was difficult to recognize the man in the photograph. It was alarming when a photograph displayed more life in someone than that person did in reality. From the officer reports, notations and photographs, there was the general consent that Yang was a source of increased troop morale.

One report contained a note comparing Yang to the presence of a newborn baby. That untainted by life innocence one gets when they hold an infant. Another common notion among the reports was that the corporal was an emotional and sensitive man, although it was also noted that despite any misgivings or contrary feelings to his work, he has never allowed emotion to get in the way of his duties.

"You were alone on this mission, correct?" The doctor asked.

"Yes Sir. I was the only operative on the ground at that time." replied the corporal in a blank tone.

The doctor made another note, letting the corporal's own reply hang in the air. This would force Yang to endure the silence, stewing in his own thoughts while the psychologist observed his reaction. In the meantime, the doctor went back to checking his notes, looking for some information he could use to pull the young SRT specialist out of his shell.

Yang had been the youngest of three brothers living with their father in Daegu, South Korea. Working in an auto repair shop, he'd had dreams of becoming a professional race driver but due to financial concerns was unable to make this goal come true despite an aptitude displayed for it. He was drafted into the RoK army where he discovered a talent for soldiering. It wasn't long until he had been promoted to a RoK Army Paratrooper regiment not unlike the United States Army Rangers.

A classified mission on the other side of the 38th Parallel resulted in his dishonorable discharge from the unit. Apparently he had been unable to mount a defense at his court martial when everything about the mission was classified and prevented him from presenting any evidence or explanation. The only known facts were that there was a friendly fire incident that resulted in several deaths.

The corporal's involvement in that classified mission brought him to the attention of Mithril. Once again there were no records concerning the mission, but not long after first contact the corporal had shown up at a Mithril training camp in the pacific. He served for a time with the Primary Response Teams before being scouted by the SRT.

The doctor glanced up as he sensed movement from his patient. Yang seemed to be finally growing uncomfortable with the sudden silence. Deciding to throw the young man a bone, the doctor relieved him of his stress by speaking.

"Your mission was a success, correct? You managed to eliminate both of your targets?"

Yang surprised the doctor by giving more than just a simple "yes" or "no" answer.

"Yes Sir. Richard Untebe, leader of the RUF and one of his lieutenants, Jubay Loso."

Dr. Fischer made another note. "They were killed four days in? Why did it take so long to get you out?"

"I had to avoid the infighting that began afterwards so it took me two more days to reach the extraction point." The corporal replied, folding his hands over his abdomen as he settled back on the recliner.

Watching Yang carefully, Dr. Fischer focused intently on the young man as he asked a true question instead of a clarification.

"Tell me about what happened your first day in?"

There was a lengthy pause and Yang seemed hesitant to respond. As the pause lengthened, Dr. Fischer decided he might have begun too early and had been about to shift to another question when Yang spoke up.

"I was inserted earlier than originally planned. The Danaan wasn't in position yet for a helicopter flight, but the deteriorating situation in Sierra Leone required immediate action. In order to delay the RUF's march on Freetown we had to forego the originally planned helicopter insertion and go for an airborne insertion." The doctor made a note of how he answered in a professional, militaristic manner. Probably a way of detaching himself from the situation he was speaking about.

"I didn't lose anything in the drop, which was nice. We didn't know exactly where Untebe and Loso were, but we knew they'd be together and that they would be in the area. I was in contact with the Danaan and they sent me satellite updates so I had an idea where to start. The RUF leadership liked to stay in beds when possible so I decided to look at those towns with any form of room and board, or at least a mattress…" Yang trailed off, eyes looking off into the distance.

"I had to visit three towns before I found the right one." The corporal grew quiet and visibly shaken. Dr. Fischer perked up, realizing that they were coming to the source of his trauma. Leaning forward in his seat, the doctor listened to Yang continue.

"Child Soldiers are everywhere in Africa…but the RUF has these…these "West Side Boys". Village children who they abduct and turn to their cause through violence, drugs…they make them kill their own families. Give them a gun and strip them of everything else…" Yang inhaled and closed his eyes, his voice shaken. The doctor watched a brief, empty smirk cross the young man's features before he continued his tail.

"They play this game where they'd bet on the sex of an unborn child. Then they'd cut the mother open with a machete to see who won…" The soldier swallowed, sitting up and covering his face with a hand. Dr. Fischer heard him attempt to regain control of his shaky breathing. "I uh…I'm sorry." Yang lowered a hand and sniffled, his eyes red and glassy after stopping a few tears.

The doctor decided to ease up, a little shocked himself at the brutality of his patient's statement. Clearing his throat, Dr. Fischer sat back and looked at the notepad in front of him, wondering how he would write this. He decided to leave it for now, focusing on his patient.

"I think that's enough for today, Yang." The doctor used the corporal's first name because it would help his patient become more familiar and comfortable with him. It would be important for their future sessions. Yang nodded mutely as he got to his feet and saluted. With a sigh, Dr. Fischer returned it and let Yang out of his office.

_**One week later…**_

Dragging long and hard on a Marlboro, Sergeant Major Melissa Mao arched backwards over her chair, arms out above her head as she stretched, her inverted image of the closed hatchway behind her righting itself as she got out of the chair and stubbed her cigarette out on the bulkhead. She got a pack out of her coat and tried to squeeze one out, snarling when she realized there was no more nicotine to be found.

Melissa put her back against the bulkhead and sighed, her bare arms crossing under her breasts as she sank to the floor on her rear, feeling the hem of her tank top roll up the back of her spine but ignoring it as she lay her forehead against her fatigue clad knees. On the desk she'd been sitting at was Dr. Anthony Fischer's report on Yang's condition.

Melissa had been the one who'd recommended to Lieutenant Clouseau that Yang see someone. Watching him get off of that chopper in his Ghillie suit, eyes a lifeless hue and the absence of his trademark innocence…god she wished she had been ordered to go instead of him. Yang was too good a man to handle it, Melissa's armor was much tougher. She wanted to protect her men. They were her "Boys", even though Clouseau was in charge now.

She glanced at the report as she tipped her head back against the bulkhead with a metallic "thunk". At this rate she'd have to drop him from the unit. He needed something, something more than therapy to get him through this. That spark of innocence had been so important to his character that with it gone, he was nothing. She didn't like losing men, but losing them to fire was easier then watching them just shrivel away right before her eyes.

She heard a knock on the hatchway and turned to see who it was as the wheel turned and it was wrestled open. Peeking inside was Melissa's former roommate, Captain and close friend Teletha Testarossa. The petite, diminutive platinum haired beauty was the commanding officer of the most advanced naval vessel in the world. She has over three hundred men and women under her command and is one of the most brilliant minds on the planet.

She is also sixteen years old with fatal motor skills.

"Melissa? Do yo-EEK!" The Captain tripped on absolutely nothing and face planted hard on the deck, making Melissa wince as she got to her feet and went over to the captain. Unlike the rest of the crew, her status meant she was allowed to wear a yellow naval uniform.

"You alright there Tessa?" Melissa helped Tessa upright, brushing her uniform off with a chuckle. Blushing profusely, Tessa played with the platinum tuft at the end of her French braid in a familiar manner. It was a nervous habit of hers and she did it often when she was thinking deeply about something.

"Thanks…" Tessa rubbed the red spot on her head with her free hand and winced, hoping it wouldn't bruise like the last two times she'd fallen. Looking up at her dark haired companion, Tessa felt a little intimidated standing so close to Melissa. Where Tessa was petite and cute, Melissa was lithe and beautiful with breasts that Tessa envied despite words to the contrary. And they were always flaunted in Melissa's tank tops.

Shaking her head, Tessa snapped herself out of her thoughts and put her hands at her sides, taking a deep breath. She'd come down here knowing that Melissa would probably be in the middle of deciding what to do with Corporal Yang. Tessa knew Yang and liked him, so she had kept herself appraise of his condition the past week. She felt guilty also, since she was the one who had given the order to send him into that place. Tessa still had nightmares from the debriefing she had read.

"I was checking to see how you were doing…with the whole Yang situation." Both of their faces saddened a little. Melissa took her seat again and Tessa moved to perch herself on the edge of Melissa's bunk.

"I don't know what to do with him Captain. He doesn't seem to be getting any better and he's started to affect the guy's around him. I'm going to have to drop him if this goes on much longer…" Melissa sighed. "I don't want to do that Captain. He's a good soldier but…" Melissa shook her head.

Tessa actually smiled as she placed her hands on her lap and regarded Melissa cheerfully. "I have some good news then. I was thinking about this other operation we have and I think it will be a good way for Yang to recover. We have a VIP in Australia under Research Division care and she needs a new driver and bodyguard." Melissa perked up curiously.

"What? Isn't that dangerous?" In Yang's state of mind, entrusting him to protect someone is tactically a bad idea. Tessa shook her head, having already considered this possibility.

"He hasn't suffered a noticeable drop in performance yet and the threat level is miniscule. I wouldn't do this if I wasn't sure he could handle it. He'll also be working with an Intelligence Unit that has been protecting her up until now. All I need to know is if you would be willing to give him up for…well, an undetermined amount of time."

Melissa thought about that. She wanted to help him, she trusted herself to do her best. But at the same time she couldn't find a solution herself at this time. Could he really handle this on his own? "What makes you think this will help him?" She asked.

Tessa smiled, looking a little wistful for a moment. "Remember Miss Kaname's affect on Sousuke?...I'm hoping for a similar reaction this time."

Melissa blinked. "You mean the VIP's a teenage girl too?" Tessa nodded. This gave Melissa more food for thought. She couldn't help but grin to herself as she imagined another Sousuke situation, and giggled in such a manner as to make Tessa shiver uncomfortably. "I think this sounds perfect. I like it the more I think about it…Captain, he's all yours." Melissa put up a lazy salute and winked under her hand.


	2. Arrival Down Under

Notes: I don't own FMP obviously. But I do own you. And your master commands you read and review.

Yang Jun-Kyu paused in the cabin doorway of the Mithril Gulf Stream aircraft and gazed across the heat hazed tarmac of Sydney Airport, Australia. It was a clear blue sky so the sun was giving Australia a full broadside and while it was a dry heat as opposed to the hellish humidity of Merida Island, Yang still felt the need to tug on his collar.

Yang had worked bodyguard duty before, so he already had a kit together for such a mission. He wore a grey three button summer suit with a white shirt, no tie. The ends of the coat were long enough to conceal the adjustable driving holster he wore on his left hip and the double magazine pouches behind it. The dossier said this would be an easy assignment, but the group of Mithril Intelligence agents in front of two Ford Taurus' looked like they knew what they were doing. He dropped the handle on his suitcase and took a quick assessment of his new comrades while he wheeled over to the group at a leisurely pace.

It was a four man team, or rather three man and one woman team. He recognized all of them from the information in the mission dossier and from what the Captain had told him back on the Danaan…

_**Two days ago, somewhere in the Atlantic, the Tuatha De Danaan briefing room.**_

"So, you will be leaving immediately. Do you understand Corporal?"

Across from the West Pacific Fleet's Princess, Yang stared at the thick dossier on the briefing table between them. He chose his next words carefully, his hands gripping each other firmly behind his back as he stood at parade rest.

"I cannot in all honesty recommend myself for active duty. To be truthful, I don't quite understand why I was told to set sail with the De Danaan when I was still under medical leave." He was looking over her head, seemingly intent on winning a staring contest with the map board behind her.

Tessa smiled sadly at his words, looking down at the dossier between them. She'd just laid out his next mission, one she felt was their best chance at getting Yang back. Matting her lips, she made her way around the table and picked up the dossier, thrusting it out towards the Corporal.

"I believe you are the best person suited to the job. Are you not the best driver in Mithril." she worded the question as a statement. Yang indeed had the highest scores in offensive and defensive driving in the entire organization, let alone the Pacific Fleet. Yang's shoulders shifted uncomfortably at the praise. Even in his current slump, the Captain's praise ignited a flame of pride in his breast.

"Yes ma'am, I do hold the top marks in offensive and defensive driving courses." He replied.

"Then you are the best choice for this mission. I will be honest with you Yang…this mission is also a statement. It's no secret that we at Tactical do not have a positive relationship with Intelligence. It has become worse since the incident in Hong Kong. I want to make sure that they are properly protecting the VIP after their recent failure in the protection of Kaname Chidori, and I want to send them a message by sending one of our best to show them how things are done." She added a smile that could melt a glacier. It was powerful enough to draw a tiny smile from Yang, despite his depression.

"I understand Captain…I won't fail you." He took the dossier and tucked it under his arm, standing to attention and saluting. Tessa seemed pleased with his response, noting a bit of spring in his step. It would pass, but Tessa had briefly restored some measure of confidence in the young man.

Returning his salute, she surprised him by offering him her hand, smiling again. "Good luck, Corporal."

Yang left that room feeling better than he had all month.

_**The present.**_

"Corporal Yang Jun-Kyu?" The leader of the protection detail stepped forward and thrust a hand in the Mithril operative's direction.

Nicholas Walker was in his early fifties with salt and pepper hair closely cropped in a military crew cut. He had a leathery, tanned complexion and steely grey eyes. Yang immediately warmed up to the man, who radiated a kind of paternal feeling when he grinned. He was a tall man, just under six feet and had apparently done a good job of keeping fit despite his age, as was evident in the strength of his grip when Yang took up the offered handshake.

"Yes Sir, Agent Walker?" Yang smiled politely, but Walker could feel a kind of emptiness behind it. He gave him pause before he resumed grinning and released the boy's hand. "You've done your homework, that's good. Still, let me introduce you to the team."

From Mr. Walker's files, Yang had a feeling things would turn out like this. The man was an old war horse of the United States' Central Intelligence Agency. He had been through several field positions from NoC to the Covert Action Group, the CIA commando's. In his later days with the Agency he'd become a case officer with several embassy postings to his credit. How he came to Mithril was classified, but that seemed rather fitting considering his status as an ex-spy. Or rather, a reinstated spy.

Yang followed Walker to the center of the group gathered in front of the one of the vehicles. Walker introduced each in turn, starting with Dominik Vikowitz, a former member of Poland's elite GROM. Not all former soldiers wound up with Tactical, the other branches had quite a few operators themselves.

Vikowitz was only slightly taller than Yang with a barrel chest and built like a fire plug. He had a blonde haired soul patch under his lip and a shaved head. He had a thuggish face but one of those ridiculous grins that reminded Yang of his fellow teammate, Kruez Weber. He wore a conservative business suit not unlike those worn by FBI and Secret Service personnel.

"Nice to meet you Corporal, I hear good things about you." The man nearly crushed Yang's hand, rocking the younger soldier's bones with a slap on the shoulder.

"It's nice to meet you, Agent Vikowitz."

"Call me Vik, eh?" They shared a chuckle, although Yang's was considerably shorter.

Moving on, next up was Charles Price, former British MI-5, military intelligence. Price was everything you saw in the stereotypical bond character. Movie star good looks, perfect black hair and a tan summer suit with blue shirt and golden tie, and, naturally, the charming British accent and personality.

"Cheers mate. Welcome to Australia." He and Yang exchanged nods and handshakes before Yang and Walker moved on to the female member of the group.

Veronika Gagarin was a rarity in Mithril in that she was a former Soviet KGB officer. Russians in Mithril were few and far between, but it made sense that they would include her in the protection detail considering the mission principle was also a Russian national. Veronika was a tall, attractive blonde with a dancer's figure and olive tan skin. She had cold, blue eyes that sent shivers up Yang's spine. She was obviously an ice queen, and this was reinforced by the rather brief touch they shared in a poor excuse for a handshake. She wore a woman's black business suit and white shirt.

"Everyone, Corporal Yang Jun-Kyu. Not that we didn't know that already. We'll be going to pick up the Mission Principle, Yang. She's at her appointment with RD, they have their own security on site so once we deliver her she's under their care until we pick her up. You ride with me and Veronika in the carrier, Price and Vik are in the trail vehicle. For now, Veronika will drive and then you'll take over tomorrow, sound good?" Yang just nodded in response. "Alright, let's get to it."

They piled into the Ford Taurus' and started to drive away, leaving the Gulf Stream behind. It would stay overnight before returning to Merida Island in the morning. Back to the Ford Taurus, Yang could immediately tell there was something off about the vehicle. Looking at Walker, who sat in back with Yang, he asked him about it.

"These are modified, aren't they?" Yang hoped to god they were, because the Taurus, while the most numerous vehicle in America in its hay day, was a terrible vehicle. Hardly something you want to drive a possible target in. Walker arched an appreciative brow at the Corporal.

"They are. Under the hood, these things are completely different. New engine, suspension, the works. Glass is bullet proof and the doors are reinforced so the car is a little heavier than normal. Two MP-5's behind the seat-" the Agent elbowed the seat they were in. "- and deployable smoke grenades under the bumpers."

Yang felt better now that he realized the cars were modified. A good car made his job easier, should the worst happen. He made a note to familiarize himself with the vehicles when he got a chance. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed Veronika looking back at them through the rear view mirror, and for a brief moment their eyes met. She immediately broke the contact and looked ahead, silent for a few moments before speaking up.

"Heckler and Koch P7, yes?" She had a distinct Russian accent.

Yang looked down at where he'd habitually brushed the left side of his coat open so he could have access to his driving holster, which was tilted forward so he could cross draw it quickly and easily while sitting. It could be tilted back into an upright position for when he got out of the car, but the weapon still required a cross draw, because he was right handed. It wasn't as fast as if he wore a holster on his right hip, but he'd chosen this because if he had to draw his weapon, chances were high that he'd have to do it while driving.

The sidearm Yang had brought with him was something he felt was perfect for the mission, that being the Heckler and Koch P7M13. It featured a unique squeeze cocking mechanism that works by simply depressing the large cocking lever in the front of the grip. This cocks the internal striker, as the pistol is self enclosed, and for all subsequent shots the weapon is cocked automatically as the slide recoils. It had a larger grip than the original P7 to accommodate a double stacked thirteen round magazine, firing 9mm rounds. The internal striker de-cocks automatically when the cocking lever is released. Thus, while having no manual safeties, it is a very safe firearm. Like all HK firearms it is durable, accurate and reliable. It was a good bodyguard pistol because it could be cocked and fired one handed, leaving the other hand free to control the mission principle.

"That's right…" Yang replied unsurely. Veronika grunted, and grew quiet again. Yang looked uneasily at Walker, who shrugged helplessly. Yang drew his coat loosely over the holster and looked out the window as they hit the highway and were apparently going to drive through Sydney to reach the RD facility. He decided to enjoy the view, spotting the Opera house on the river and other Australian landmarks.


	3. Stone Cold

I have no rights to anything, etc. Feel free to PM or e-mail me if anyone has any questions, suggestions, reviews, flames, whatever. Don't forget that Wikipedia is your friend incase you were curious about any of the obscure references I'll be making throughout this entire story. I hope you enjoy this next chapter.

**_Sydney, Australia_**

The drive through Sydney was fairly uneventful. It was however, educational. Driving through the city streets helped him get accustomed to the pulse of the city. Because that's what roads were, veins pumping cars through a concrete and glass heart. Each city has its own blood flow and picking up on this flow was how one became a good driver in a foreign setting.

So he felt the pulse, experienced the flow of traffic, the behavior of the drivers around them, the posted speed limits and the actual speed of the road, lane sizes and the direction of rush hour. He made a note to chat up some locals who could talk to him about traffic in Sydney.

"Nice place isn't it Corporal?" Agent Walker said, looking out the other window. Yang turned to look at the older gentleman and hesitated a moment before he answered.

"Yes sir." Yang returned to his window, bracing an elbow against the door and cupping his knuckles under his chin. Walker stole a glance at the young man, about to correct him with the whole "Sir" thing but upon seeing the distant look in the corporal's eyes, decided against it. Walker had seen that look in some former CAG shooters he'd worked with. Burn out husks, too much time spent downrange in third world hell holes. Walker couldn't understand it. What the fuck had happened to the kid in the file he'd received?

_**An hour and a half later.**_

The Research Division facility was set on the north side of four stacked buildings owned by some corporation called "Dyna-Systems". Each building looked identical, being four story lengthy structures that appeared to be quite sturdy. They had domed roofs of tinted glass except for a series of atrium openings that probably provided natural lighting to the building through mirrors.

Each building was separated by a wall with an entry gate manned by uniformed rent-a-cops, the only professional looking security being the ones manning the front gate of the Mithril building. Yang noticed how easy it would be to get into the facility and sighed. He could see ten different things wrong with the security of the facility with but a glance. He decided to bring this to Walker's attention when he had a chance.

Currently, they were parked just to the left of the gate with the trail vehicle to the right of it. Veronika and Price remained in the vehicles, keeping the engines warm while Walker waited in front of the gate for the principle to emerge from the facility. Vikowitz and Yang stood outside the passenger doors of each vehicle providing perimeter security. While he waited, Yang tapped a finger against his thigh in a rhythmic one-two-three-pause.

_Chest, chest, head. Knocks them down, keeps them dead._

It was a training mantra, something Yang had learned in Mithril basic. It referred to the "Double-Tap" counter terrorist technique. Two rounds in rapid succession to the chest to ensure accuracy and to increase the stopping and knockdown power of low caliber cartridges, the weapon of choice in hostage scenarios. 9mm rounds were used because they lessened the chance of over-penetration, possibly shooting through bad guys and injuring hostages, but because it was a weaker caliber, three-round bursts or the double tap were the best methods of putting a target down, with double tapping be the most accurate. The final shot is if they don't drop after the first two, and to make sure they don't get up again. Yang heard the gate open behind him.

"Have a good day Ana." Said one of the guards, and a soft, vaguely Russian accent replied, "You too Micky. I'll see you Friday."

"Hey Ana, how did it go?" Walker said behind Yang.

"It went well Walker, thank you…is this the new guy?"

"Yeah, Corporal, come say hello!"

Yang frowned just a little. He didn't approve of introductions in the open like this, regardless of estimated threat levels, presence of guards and location. However he knew that his refusal to comply would result in longer exposure, so he decided to get this over with as quickly as possible. With one last check of his sector, he turned and walked around the car to meet Anastasiya Kamov, the mission principle.

Anastasiya was five and a half feet tall and weighed one hundred and twenty pounds. At seventeen years of age, it was already quite clear that she was going to mature into a beautiful woman. She had short, auburn hair so deep it looked like it was on fire and it framed her face nicely with eyes like embers to match. She had a soft tan and an athletic figure honed through what her file said was her favorite hobby, tennis. She wore a pair of hip hugger jeans and a yellow tube top under her denim jacket. She was…very perky.

"Hey, he's kind of cute!" She beamed and bounced forward to meet him, offering a hand. "I'm Anastasiya, everyone calls me Ana though."

Yang blinked, blushing just a little as he took her grip with a little bit of hesitation. "Um, Yang. Yang Jun-Kyu." He managed a tiny smile. She arched a brow at him, looking at Walker for a second before returning her gaze to Yang.

"It's nice to meet you Yang. Come on, I want to know more about my new driver." The confident girl released his hand and opened the rear passenger door, hopping inside the vehicle ahead of Walker and him. Exchanging looks with Walker, the Agent in charge nodded and took the front passenger seat so Yang could sit in back with the principle.

Yang hadn't even closed his door before the girl was leaning over into his personal space, inches away from his face and peering up at him with those burning eyes and an energetic grin. Yang found him self leaning away just a tad, caught off guard by her forwardness.

"So, you're Korean huh? South?" Yang nodded quietly, avoiding eye and looking through her instead of at her. This caused the girl to frown, feeling ignored. Turning her lips thoughtfully, she gave a shrug and leaned up to give him a kiss on the end of his nose. This got Yang's attention, and caused him to give a start at the sudden action.

"Wh-wha-?" he exclaimed, cheeks coloring. She giggled and sat back, her hands withdrawing onto her lap.

"Got your attention didn't it?" Smirking, the girl cocked her head to the side as she fixed him with that intense gaze again. Yang straightened up a little now that she was no longer invading his personal space, but shifted uncomfortably under that gaze.

"I…what did you want to know about me?" He quickly moved the conversation forward, glancing timidly at the girl. This seemed to amuse her, as once more that toothy grin crossed her face. She had high cheek bones and cute dimples, he noticed.

"So you're from Mithril's Tactical Division huh? The Special Response Teams? I kind of thought you'd be bigger." She pouted a little, her romantic image of a Special Forces soldier crushed. Yang might have been insulted if he actually cared enough.

"Sorry Ma'am…" He replied quietly. This seemed to irritate her, her eyes glowering at him.

"Ana. Call me Ana. Say it."

"Ana. Call me Ana." Yang replied flatly, his features blank. She laughed at his straight face.

"Well you have a sense of humor! Good, I was worried there. I thought I was going to have to check for a pulse, you seem so…dead." She snickered and folded her arms across her impressive chest. Yang smiled a wistfully at that.

_Maybe I already am…_

Suddenly, she was snuggled up against his side, hugging his arm and resting her cheek against his shoulder.

"H-hey!" He lifted his shoulder and brought his other arm across his chest to try and push her off of him, but froze as she shot him a look. A look that said, "Touch me and I will end you." Yang gulped and looked over at Walker, who was watching the whole thing from the front seat, for help. Walker winked and turned around, leaving Yang with this energetic, bold young woman.

With a sigh of resignation, he looked out the window and braced an arm against the door, putting his cheek into his fist. This mission was going to be a long one.

_**Mithril Safehouse, forty minutes later.**_

Mithril's safe house was a one and one half tan colored wooden bungalow with a grey roof. It was a fairly large "California Bungalow" as they were called, apparently very popular in the early 1900's in Australia. This bungalow had an asymmetrical "L" shape to it with the inside of the "L" facing the street.

The building was located at the bend of a curving street that snaked through the residential neighborhood, many of them bungalows as well. This bungalow was one of the larger ones, but unlike the others did not have an enclosed porch. The structure looked large enough to comfortably fit the team, although someone was most likely bunking with someone else.

During the drive, Anastasiya had passed out on Yang's arm and he didn't have the courage to wake her up. But he needed his arm back now that they were pulling up to the property, forcing him to gently nudge her awake as they pulled into the two car garage next to the house.

"Ma'am? I mean Ana? We're here…" He said softly, poking her arm a few times. She groaned and hugged his arm tighter to her breasts much to his discomfort, her eyes fluttering open.

"Hrm? Oh, hey, we're here." She let go of his arm and sat up, stretching with a yawn.

Yang sighed and opened his door, stepping out of the car as the trail vehicle pulled into the other space a few feet away. The garage looked well stocked, with a professional tool cabinet and bench against one wall, leading Yang to think that one of the team members was familiar with automobile maintenance. A door near the back led into the house itself.

Suddenly the lights turned on as Veronika hit a switch on her side of the garage.

"Alright, we're here. Vikowitz, why don't you show the corporal around the house. Price, kitchen, make something special for tonight, gotta welcome the corporal properly." The team filed in through the front door, but Yang and Veronika remained behind. Wordlessly, she unlocked the car and hovered nearby while he fetched his bag from the trunk. He glanced at her as he shut the trunk afterwards. He got the feeling that this wasn't just some ice queen act. She just didn't like him for some reason.

While he stood there trying to figure it out, she turned and left the garage after the others. Matting his lips, he started to follow her but stopped as he realized something. Why was nobody watching the house while they were gone? Yang grunted and rolled his shoulders uneasily at this. It was a stupid move. Someone could have snuck in and planted an explosive or monitoring device. Taking a deep breath, he made a note to bring this up with Walker along with his other observations. He followed Veronika through the door.

The garage led into a well equipped kitchen with an island in the center featuring a counter on one side and a large chopping board and sink on the other. Another, larger double basin sink next to a washing machine was near the kitchen window, cabinets lining two walls while knives and pots and pans hung on another. The eastern wall had been knocked down and opened immediately into the expansive living room. The front door was visible from here and a long hall at the other side of the room led to a series of doors that were probably bedrooms while another wide archway along the rear wall of the living room led to something else.

The living room had a large futon couch that looked like it might have turned into a bed, and two leather recliners facing a fairly large plasma television. Large speaker towers lined the sides of the entertainment area, which appeared to have an X-Box 360, DVD player and digital cable set up. What looked like an alcohol cabinet was on the rear wall behind the entertainment seats.

The living room was obviously divided into the entertainment side and the side closest to the kitchen, which had what appeared to be a very comfortable looking wooden framed love seat and an equally comfortable looking chair. They were arranged in front of a fireplace.

"Welcome to home base, corporal. Follow me, I'll show you around." Vikowitz strode past Yang and gestured for the other soldier to follow him.

"Here we have the living room, our entertainment area, which we use frequently. Watch out for Ana, she hogs the X-Box." He grinned back at Yang, who chuckled a little. Vikowitz rolled his eyes and moved on, leading into through the long hall and pushing open doors. Yang was vaguely aware of Ana following them.

"Four bedrooms, me and Price sleep here and Walker in here, you'll be bunking with him. This room across the hall is the bathroom. These two at the end here are Veronika and Ana's." Yang noted the interior of each, possessing one wide window between the beds and a pair of dressers at the foot of both beds. A full length mirror and wardrobe were on the same door as the wall, which entered at the corner of the rooms.

In comparison, Veronika and Ana's rooms were quite spacious with high, queen sized beds and thick mattresses with wooden frames and four corner bed posts. Two windows along two walls and a full set of wardrobes and dressers lined the other two. Both rooms also had a private bathroom. Veronika's room was impeccable, the bed made and everything in place. Ana's was a disaster area with the bed unmade, the vanity set up on one of the dressers stacked haphazardly with beauty products and her clothes hanging out of open dressers and on the floor around the bed. Some of it was underwear, underwear that no underage teenager should be wearing.

Yang and Vikowitz shared a sigh and turned simultaneously to look at Anastasiya, who laughed sheepishly, grinning and trying to play it off like everything was A-ok. Yang and Vikowitz shook their heads and moved back into the living area, pushing Anastasiya in front of them. She pouted, obviously wanting to hog Yang again but seeing as how she wouldn't get a chance for awhile, went over to the entertainment area and plopped down to play video games.

"Here is the dining room..." Vikowitz led Yang through the archway in the living room. It led to a large family dining room with a dark wood table clear of any decorations and a few cheap paintings on the wall. Three windows were in this room facing the rear of the house. To Yang's left was a staircase that led to a tiny loft set in the rafters, seemingly doubling as an attic. There were two small, triangular windows facing the front and right side of the bungalow. Under the stairs was a pool table and in the corner a stack of purchased firewood.

Yang made a mental list of things he did not like. First and foremost being so many damn windows in the building. Each one was a possible entry point and the glass did not look bullet proof. The doors were not reinforced and the alarm system was a civilian model, albeit a higher end one. There was no "Safe room", a bolt hole that the team could retreat to as a last resort. If an assailant wanted Ana dead, he could create a hail of splinters by blasting a wall down. The majority of the protective detail was sleeping together on one side of the house, which meant that someone could use explosives on those two rooms and take out half the team if the other two roommates were on duty while the first two were sleeping.

On the other hand, the wood was thick and sturdy and he estimated they could stop anything short of a high powered rifle cartridge. If the fireplace was in use and heating the inside of the living room, it would mess up thermal scanning since the wood would absorb the heat nicely and act as a thermal barrier. If the enemy wanted her alive, they wouldn't risk using breaching charges and accidentally killing her in a hail of splintering wood, which meant they would have to use windows and doorways. Yang was assuming they would use the windows if they were pro's, and the doors as a secondary entry point.

Yang was pretty sure that while some of the team was experienced shooters, they obviously knew nothing about VIP protection or had forgotten the training they received, if any, during their former careers. Yang had a pretty good memory and extensive training. "Jack-of-all-trades, master of most" was the unofficial SRT motto.

"So, what do you think? Nice place huh?" Vikowitz said with a grin, hands brushing his coat back to rest on his hips. The squat, muscular Pol carried an HK like Yang, except his was a USP. There was something different about it however and he realized it was a P8 model, a variation of the USP created for the German Bundeswehr, the Border Police. It was a 9mm and had a translucent magazine for checking one's ammo count. Although if you counted rounds like you were supposed to, you shouldn't need it.

Yang was in a foul mood, his brooding and self wallowing disturbed all day by uncomfortably friendly teammates and teenagers. "It's a nice home if you were living in it. We're all fucked if a larger force decides to hit us." He turned and left the room, leaving Vikowitz flabbergasted.

Entering the living room, he walked immediately toward Walker and Veronika in conversation by the fireplace. He put a hand on Walker's shoulder, interrupting and drawing both of the Intelligence Agent's attention. He jerked a thumb behind him.

"Sir, Agent Gagarin, meet me in the dining." Yang's tone was serious and bore a finality to it that brooked no argument from either, although Walker wasn't used to someone wrestling control like this, especially someone younger than him. Next was Price, who was washing vegetables in the kitchen sink.

"Agent Price, dining room, now." Yang spun and strode purposefully across the living room towards Ana, who was sitting on the floor with her back against the couch, bare toes playing with the warm colored rug under her.

"Ana, if you wouldn't mind, I'd like you to join us in the dining room." He looked down at her, and she looked up at him. He wasn't smiling.

After everyone had gathered into the dining room, Yang walked around to the head of the table while ignoring the mix of glares, curious looks and confused expressions. Wordlessly, he casually removed his coat and folded it across the back of his chair, unbuttoning his cuffs and rolling his sleeves up his forearms. Taking a deep breath, he finally looked up and leveled his monotone gaze upon the assembled group.

"First off, I'm not about to relieve Agent Walker of overall command. But it has become clear to me that none of you know shit about VIP protection. So I will start by pointing out what I've seen you and others do wrong. I take my job very seriously and regardless of the estimated threat to Miss. Kamov's safety, remember that there are five of us protecting her. That is a rather large number for a low profile target." He let that sink in while he took a moment to gauge their reactions.

Walker looked curious to see what Yang had to say, his hands on his hips. Veronika looked pretty pissed, arms folded angrily and her icy gaze stabbing into him. Yang felt nothing, which seemed to piss her off even more. Vikowitz honestly looked hurt, hands in his pant pockets. Price was just in shock still, his brows on high with his arms folded over his chest.

They had all been expecting, probably from his file and attached photograph, a young, pleasant man who would probably act like an FNG despite his Special Forces assignment. They were certainly not expecting this dark, brooding personality and empty, lifeless expression. Yang struck while he had their attention.

"First off, no one was watching the house while you came to pick me up from the Airport. Someone could have broken in and planted an explosive in your absence. I'm going to run a bug sweep of the entire house after this. If you're listening now, know that I will find you and I will kill you." Yang was referring to any eavesdroppers, speaking evenly, never raising or dropping his voice. Keeping his eyes up and shifting slowly from each person in the room.

"Second, this "Safe House" has too many possible points of entry and is completely unfortified in any manner whatsoever. Your cars are safer than this bungalow, and that's taking into account how much easier it is to ambush a vehicle than it is to assault a building, even this one. The RD facility is a mess, it'd probably be easier for anyone to get her from there than from us. I know you can't do anything about that Agent Walker, but I'd appreciate it if you could pass a memo along. Your alarm system couldn't keep a pro burglar, let alone a trained operative out. You have no safe room to evacuate the VIP to should escape be impossible. I'm gonna guess you guys drive her along the same route to and from any of her scheduled activities?" The uncomfortable look on Vikowitz's face told him that it was true.

"You also probably don't have much training in this kind of work either. Unfortunately we can't train on the mission, so we'll just have to do our best. Also, Ana, I'm sorry, but please don't sit against my side. You were blocking my holster, I would have had to spend precious seconds moving you so I could get to it. In those seconds I could have my brains blown out all over you." Ana covered her mouth with a gasp, her eyes wide with horror. She looked scared, even though Yang wasn't trying to intimidate anyone. He was just talking, no emotions or expressions. Maybe that's why they were intimidated.

"I'm going to make a more detailed list when I have time, I'll share it at another date. For now, I'm going to take a look around the house and the block. Vikowitz, I need a map of Sydney, a street map. I also need Miss Kamov's weekly schedule and the routes you normally take when ferrying her from location to location. Veronika, new frequencies for the radios. Who is it that tunes the cars?" Yang was very surprised when Veronika spoke up.

"I do." She spat, smirking as she glared at him. He paused for a moment, his face still blank to give the impression that he was in fact not caught off guard.

"You and me will go put a car through its paces, I want to know what they can really do. Price, I need you to get me traffic reports for the past week, I want to know what traffic is like around here. Also, I'm going to make a list of things for you to buy sometime this week, as soon as possible. Sir…" Yang looked at Walker, who arched a careful brow at the young man.

"…Can you coordinate these activities, make sure they get done?"

Eyes turned to Walker now, a few them looking to him for help and salvation. He wasn't going to listen to this kid from Tactical, right?

"Alright Corporal, we'll do things your way." The Agent quietly left the room, leaving his people feeling slightly betrayed. They focused their anger on Yang, who felt it roll harmlessly over him.

"I'm done. Get to it." Yang left the dining room to get a look at the outside of the building.


	4. Monsters Don't Blush

_Thank you to those who reviewed and I'm happy to know you are enjoying this fiction. Knowing someone is reading and enjoying it gives me pleasure and encourages me to write some more. Also, I hope you were satisfied with my answers Greydon Creed, thank you for showing such an interest in what I was doing, I appreciate it. To all readers, feel free to message me or leave a review with any questions, comments, praise, flaming, or constructive criticism. I am always striving to be a better writer. Please, enjoy this next chapter._

_**Australia, Mithril Safe House.**_

_Chest, chest, head. Knocks them down, keeps them dead._

Yang tapped one-two-three-pause on the armchair of his recliner. It was strange. He'd never had this habit before, repeating training mantras. Maybe it was just another scar from Sierra Leone. He sighed and forced his finger to stop moving, reaching out with his left hand to take a drink of water he'd poured in a glass. To his right on the end table between the recliner and the couch was his sidearm and a notepad on which he'd made a list of things for Price to purchase in the morning.

Yang had left the lights off and had the curtains closed, immersing him self in total darkness. It was creepy and dramatic, yes, but such was his mood. He was feeling guilty about his outburst earlier, and was trying to find the appropriate way to apologize come morning.

It wasn't their fault, he knew. Some moron at Intel probably assigned people to protect Miss Kamov based on what they read in their files instead of actually speaking with them. He knew that Walker and Vikowitz were probably good shooters and could be counted on in a fight. But GROM and CAG didn't train in VIP protection, and neither has much of a budget for outsourcing training. No idiot at Intel would know that, they probably just saw in their files that both of them were ex-Special Forces and thought they'd be good candidates to protect Miss Kamov.

The other two, Price and Veronika, were spooks. They were probably good spooks, but neither of their former intelligence agencies trained in VIP protection. It was even in doubt whether they could shoot, but both were here because frankly those are the types of personnel Intelligence has. Veronika was a bit of a wildcard though. What were the odds that the Russian ex-KGB officer had been the mechanic of the bunch? And then there was the way she looked at him. He'd have to confront her about it later, maybe after he gathered some intel from Walker.

Rubbing his face, he froze as he heard some movement to his right. It took him only a moment to recognize via smell and instinct who it was.

"Yes, Ana?..." he sighed and relaxed again. She gulped in the darkness before taking a few steps, feeling her way ahead of her. He listened to her fumble her hand along the couch before he decided to give her some light, pulling the lamp cord to his left. She flinched as her eyes took a moment to adjust to the brightness.

She was wearing a white cotton camisole that stopped just under her navel and a pair of matching pajamas. That camisole was one size too small, he thought, but wasn't exactly feeling up to being prudish at the moment. He figured she wasn't leaving anytime soon so he gestured to the couch beside him and took another drink from his water glass.

Ana hesitated as she looked between the couch, the gun on the end table and the grumpy Korean in the recliner. She eventually sat down, brought her legs up and held her knees to her chest. She watched him more or less ignore her for several moments before asking, "What happened?"

Yang frowned a little, a part of him knowing what she meant but consciously avoiding it. "What happened what?"

"I don't know. I just get the feeling something happened. When we first met, you seemed like you were hiding something. Is that what's bothering you?" Her eyes caught fire from the lamp light, and he avoided looking into them. He didn't respond for awhile before replying evasively,

"You're smarter than you look." She seemed to find this amusing, smirking over the top of her knees.

"I'm just not as ditzy as I pretend to be. Are you going to answer my question?"

Yang snorted at that. "No, I'm not." He took another drink of water.

Anastasiya stared at Yang, trying to understand him. There was a kind of emptiness around him, like there was something missing from the picture. His expression was something she'd seen on her father's, after he started drinking himself to death. An expressionless guard that she had later learned he wore because to wear anything else would have exposed him self to the reality of things. She did not like being reminded of this.

"You might feel better if you talk about it. I don't mind, I'm used to helping my friends like that. It does suck that once they tell me their problems, it feels like it's now on my shoulders, but it lifts some of the weight off theirs. I could do the same for you." She tried again. She was surprised when he laughed. It was a cold, humorless sound.

"My problem is one you don't want to carry Ana, trust me. It's harsher than anything you're used to." He took another drink, trying to keep his temper from getting too hot.

"I've listened to some rough things Yang, my friend went through a bad divorce. Her father beat her mother sometimes. I watched my dad drink himself death in front of my mom and I. I know someone whose boyfriend OD'd on heroin." She pressed.

"I killed four children who had taken turns raping and dismembering a woman while a fifth watched and jerked off. They were on heroin too." Yang replied in a monotonous tone.

His words struck deep. Her entire body seized up as if to defend her self from this terrible truth about him. But it was too late. His words repeated over and over again in her head. Her chest tightened and she couldn't breath, as she realized she was in a room with a child murderer. Her chest opened again to let in fresh air, which she drew rapidly upon in an attempt to calm down.

Yang glanced at her to see the girl hugging her knees tighter, looking terribly confused and afraid and on the verge of hyperventilating. He swallowed, the image striking something in his emptiness and causing a tiny pang of regret. He hadn't meant to snap at her like that. She was just a kid, she couldn't have known. But part of him didn't care to console her, telling him that she deserved a taste of the real world outside her blessed existence.

Ana couldn't find anything to say after that. He didn't care to explain or elaborate, or console her. Neither of them spoke for several minutes, before Ana wordlessly got to her feet and trudged back to her room, holding herself. He didn't watch her go, but he glimpsed the way she moved and the final look she'd given at the very edge of the light. Waiting until he heard her door close before turning off the lamp with another tug. Sheathed in darkness once more, he felt the unspoken word at the end.

_Monster…_

_**9:30 AM, four hours and thirty minutes after sunrise**_

Yang woke aware of two things. One, he wasn't going to get anymore sleep, although he had an allowance of two more hours. And two, the entire team was in the kitchen having a heated debate. He pushed the covers back and knuckled an eye socket, stifling a yawn. Swinging his legs over the edge of the bed, he scratched his bare chest and rose to his feet, the other hand adjusting his pajama pants.

He could smell breakfast, guessing Price had cooked again. Yang felt bad about last night's dinner, which had been silent and gloomy. The food had been delicious, certainly a cut above the Mess hall at Mithril. Yang wished he had had time to savor it, but the soldier habit of eating as quickly as possible and the rather uncomfortable stares from everyone gathered had kept him from doing so.

He got up, then got down and pumped out fifty quick push ups to get his blood flowing. As he did, he listened to the team's debate, which was naturally about him.

"Guy is a bloody wanker if you ask me."

"Nobody asked you, Price. Like it or not, the kid knows what he's doing." It was Vikowitz, Yang deduced.

"So? This is Intel's Op, not Tactical's. You and Walker are just as good as he is, he's just taking this whole thing too seriously. Ana's not in any danger, this whole thing is just a bloody power play between the division heads."

"The corporal is the only one of us with actual training and experience in personal protection. They didn't teach us how to guard VIP's, wasn't in CAG's mission statement. And it damn sure ain't a spook thing either. GROM don't train for that, they do military and CT work." Walker said.

"Walker is correct. We didn't cover that in GROM. He was a bit of an ass last night, but he called it like he saw it. And now that I know it, I agree with him. We'll have to start being more careful. If this is a power play, we're making Intel look even more like the idiots we already appear to be. D-Ops is still catching flak from the higher ups on the Hong Kong bit."

"He was there, in Hong Kong. Led one of the PRT's." A voice that could only be Veronica's spoke up.

"Fucking hell, the guy hates us." Price said. He wasn't nearly as suave as he seemed, Yang decided.

"He's been nothing but a professional so far. But there is something there, it ain't hate though. Keep your eyes on him, I'll see what I can dig up. There's something that wasn't mentioned in his file, changed him. It must've been recent or it would have been in there already."

Yang opened the door after Walker finished speaking, pulling a grey t-shirt over his body. The conversation halted and all eyes went to him. He surprised them all by replying rather calmly, "Morning."

There was some hesitation there before Vikowitz, followed by Walker replied "Good morning. Breakfast?" Price sighed behind the two and began to fix another eggs in the hole for the corporal. Yang walked over to the fridge and pulled out a carton of orange juice. Yang actually hated orange juice, but the sourness appealed to him this morning.

As Price put a plate with a piece of toast, one side coated in egg, on the counter, Yang sat up on the nearby stool and looked around at the team, taking a deep breath.

"I owe you all an apology. My behavior last night was inexcusable. I should have presented my complaints in a more professional manner. I didn't mean to tear you or your unit down. I'm sure you're all very good at your jobs. I hope we can move past it though and work together to remedy our strategy…is that fair?" He looked around, meeting each gaze in turn. He would really have to have a talk with Veronika about those looks.

It took a few seconds, but eventually they all nodded, except Veronika who simply gave her consent by not rebuking him. Yang pulled out the notepad from last night from where he'd tucked it into his waistline and put it in front of Price.

"This is just a list of some things that I think would help us and make our job easier. If you all think I'm being unreasonable, then please let me know. Once again, I'm not trying to run this unit. You are still in charge Agent Walker. I just want to support you as best I can." Yang stared intently at the team leader, who smiled and nodded gently in reply.

"You could have presented it a bit less calloused, but that doesn't mean you weren't right. I was planning to show you our radios and current equipment after breakfast so we can flesh out your list a bit more. Vikowitz and I will watch Ana, she doesn't have anything scheduled for today. You, Price and Veronika go take a spin with one of the Ford's. She knows the in and outs of those vehicles, she helped oversee their modifications. You can drop Price off to go shopping while you two find someplace to put the vehicle through her paces."

Yang nodded and cracked a tiny smile. Walker had taken this all rather well, and he was glad the experienced leader was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt and organize things for him. Everyone seemed fine with the plan, mostly because it was Walker who had put it together. Veronika still looked like someone had ordered her to wade through raw sewage.

After breakfast, Vikowitz went to wake Ana up, Price cleaned the kitchen and Veronika returned to her room. Walker and Yang retreated into the dining room where Veronika had laid out the available gear. It was more or less a good news bad news situation. Walker started with the radios.

"These are brand new. Mic, earpiece and control." He pointed to each item, all of which fit in the palm of his hand. The control was about the size of a flash memory stick, the earpiece a tiny hearing aid, and the mic had dimensions a fraction larger than a quarter's.

"The control is connected to the mic by this small wire. The controls are on the side of the stick. Volume wheel, frequency wheel, and three buttons for mapping preset frequencies to. Mic goes on the inside of your collar and is noise canceling. The earpiece is wireless, but uses beam transmission technology so it can't be jammed. The frequencies can be jammed but the link between your mic and ear cannot. These guys can run for thirty six hours straight before you need to change batteries."

He handed the tech to Yang, who felt and examined the pieces before trying them on. It was certainly the smallest radio he'd ever worked with but would it work as advertised? Guess they'd find out eventually. Next up were four, secure satellite phones. They were a little thick so they could house the scrambling tech needed to keep the line secure, but it wasn't any worse than current market satellite phones. Yang had worked with this model before, and had liked it. It wasn't a SATCOM, but it was good enough for high satellite traffic areas like cities.

"Your standard issue bug sweepers, nothing you haven't worked with before I'm sure." Yang nodded in reply.

"You recognize these I bet. Mithril C4I combat headsets." Yang certainly did recognize them. The last time he'd worn one was in Hong Kong during the Yangtze hostage rescue.

C4I stands for Command, Control, Communications, Computers, and Intelligence. These are the key components connecting a soldier to the men under and above him, giving him as much support as possible to process and execute his mission. Roughly the size and shape of sparring headgear, it combined a full ear communications headset, tactical computer, and an optical/audio enhancement package all in one durable, lightweight frame. It can run for forty eight hours straight, slightly less if one makes extensive use of the visual enhancements.

The visor of the headset when dropped over the eyes looked like something out of a sci-fi movie. One of the PRT members Yang had served with said it resembled Robocop's visor. The visor displayed such things as designated targets, waypoints and other useful battlefield information. It provided optical zoom, night and thermal visions.

Normally the entire headset was hooked via a cord at the base of the frame behind the head, leading to an impact resistant computer housed on a soldier's back. A forearm PDA or torso mounted controller let the soldier access the computerized aspects of the system. There were no such computers here.

There were only four such headsets, since they obviously hadn't expected Yang's assignment. Overall it wasn't as bad as Yang had been dreading, but it was missing any surveillance gear. Yang wondered why that was, but figured the kit was put together by the same clueless fucker who'd slapped this whole detail together.

"Well we'll have to come up with several frequencies and codes for those frequencies so we can switch on the fly. I don't really see us using the 4I sets unless we come under attack in the dark or something. Everyone has batons, flashlights, combat folders?" Walker nodded and patted the folding knife behind his hip. He had a collapsible baton in his room and he always carried a flashlight in a pouch on his other hip.

"Overall sir, things seem pretty good. My list is mainly surveillance stuff, some PDA's, cameras. We'll hook the cameras up to the PDA's so whoever wants to or is on duty can cycle through them and watch what's happening on his screen." Yang said, nodding and scratching his head. He realized he still hadn't taken a shower yet.

"Sir, I'm going to grab a shower real quick." Yang turned, but stayed a moment as he added, "Thank you, Sir."

Walker smirked and waved a dismissive hand in Yang's direction. "Don't worry about it. I'm glad you're with us Yang, even if the higher ups aren't." This got Walker a ghost of a smile from the young operator, who left the room after those parting words.

Entering the living room, he saw Ana sitting at the counter eating a bowl of cereal. Their eyes met briefly, her spoon frozen in the space between the bowl and her lips. Neither of them moved for three heartbeats before Yang turned away and walked back to his room to get his toiletries.

_**On the road, after dropping Price off in the vicinity of several electronics and security stores**_

Yang was starting to hate this woman. She spoke only to give him directions, and brief ones at that. The car was utterly silent between the words, "Left" and "Right". But it was like things had become a contest now, neither of them willing to be the first to talk, her out of spite and him out of annoyance. As they found some open road near the city limits, Yang pushed the modified Taurus' a bit.

They were a bit heavy in the front thanks to the reinforced, enhanced V6 engine under the hood. She was a six speed manual which he was grateful for, manual was always better for offensive and defensive driving. The controls for the deployable smoke grenades were installed on the dashboard by the hazard lights and under a Garmin brand GPS.

Overall, driving the modified Taurus was like driving something utterly confused about its purpose in life. Under certain situations, it excelled in areas that it would otherwise not. She was heavy thanks to the engine and armored siding and windows, but light in the rear. She could break on a dime, but accelerating took a little longer if the weight wasn't balanced on take off. But really, he'd driven worse. He had a flashback concerning a trip to Japan, the world's largest Arm Slave, and a boosted Japanese grocery truck.

Yang stole a glance at his driving partner and sucked in a deep breath. Letting it out, he decided to give into the silence and let her win this one. But only after he'd gotten her attention.

Shifting gears, he put the car out ahead and weaved into the right lane between two cars, shifting over another lane and dropping back so he could swing between two more and onto the adjacent exit ramp. He swung her tight around the curve as they left the freeway, breaking hard as they hit the red light at the base of the ramp. He smirked as he checked on her, finding her glaring angrily at him, her features flush. Seems he'd given her a bit of a scare.

"Let's talk, Agent Gagarin." He turned on his blinker this time and drove casually along the street through tiny strip malls that turned into suburban housing. He ignored her looks until she finally responded.

"About what Corporal?" Her accent was thick enough to be a bit of a joke. He could easily imagine her in a commissar's uniform, barking at troops.

"You seem to have taken a serious dislike to me, even though we've never met. We have, never met, right?" He looked over at her.

"Correct. And I only started to dislike you after last night. Before that, I didn't trust you." She kept her eyes forward. Yang looked back at the road as well. For a full minute and a half, the two cold faced operatives didn't speak.

"It isn't just about that though, is it? You really have something against my being here. I want to know what it is and if this is going to be a problem." He tapped a finger against the driving wheel as they turned.

Once again there was an uncomfortable silence. Yang drove around the same block a few times, hoping she'd get bored of seeing the same scenery and look at him for a change when she spoke. Eventually she did, fixing him with that steely gaze. He pulled over and put her in park, turning his head and giving her his full attention.

They stared at each other for several long moments, both their features masks of defense. However, hers was an intentional guard, while his was simply there. His face wasn't going to collapse because it was real, while her façade would eventually crumble away, forcing her to speak. Yang cut her off as soon as she opened her mouth.

"You're not just upset over me being here on your turf, or because of my performance review last night. That was just the trigger for the angrier side of that distrust. It's that time of the month, isn't it?" From the way her eyes widened and the way her cheeks darkened, he had apparently guessed correctly. It was a theory he'd come up with during his shift last night. It had seemed ridiculous at first, but after extensive thought it seemed to fit more and more.

"Right. Don't worry about it, I won't tell anyone. But quit staring at me like that, it makes me uncomfortable." He turned back to the wheel and pulled away from the curve, looping back the way they'd come. She glowered at him for the next ten minutes. Yang actually wondered if she was going to pull her gun a few times from the way several of those looks had intensified. Thankfully, she kept it holstered and eventually stopped staring at him.

When the freeway opened up again, he put her through some more maneuvers, keeping an eye peeled for the authorities as he did. He couldn't do anything fancy, but he could change lanes, measure the speed of the vehicle, etc. After he'd seemingly had enough and was driving back towards Sydney, she spoke.

"What about you? Why are you always so gloomy?" She glanced out the corner of her eye at him. She noticed the way his jaw moved and the tightening of his grip on the vehicle controls. His nostrils flared as he took a deep breath, his eyes showing the gears turning away in that head of his. He was obviously thinking about it.

"Walker is going to find out eventually. Before this, I was on an Op. It wasn't pleasant. Can't tell you more than that." He violently shifted gears, putting his foot down on the accelerator. She didn't seem to take the hint.

"So that's why you're in the foul mood? You had a hard time on the Op?" All she got was a nod in reply.

"…I heard you were in Hong Kong. You were leading one of the rescue teams." She shifted to a different topic, sensing that she wasn't going to get anything else out of him.

"That's right. Lost a couple good friends there." He looked her way, meeting her gaze.

"I don't hate you and Intelligence if that's what you're asking. I'm disappointed nobody caught the mole before he set us up, but you and Walker weren't involved."

Veronika took a deep breath, brushing back one side of her blonde hair and tucking it behind an ear. "Look…I'm sorry if we got off on the wrong foot. Shall we try again?" Yang gave her a brief, appraising look. She seemed sincere enough, but she was a professional spook, after all. He decided to take a chance and took his hand off the transmission for a moment, turning it upwards.

"Sure. Corporal Yang Jun-Kyu." He wore a smile, but it was empty.

"Veronika Gagarin, Mithril Intelligence." She rested her hand over his and they squeezed palms. It was the first time he'd seen the Russian smile. It was a small, wistful thing but hinted at something pleasing. Her steel grey eyes looked more like flowing mercury for the brief moment they shared, gazing at one another. She knew he was faking, but didn't take it personally. She knew the emptiness wasn't directed towards her.

And just like that it was over, their hands parted and returned to their respective owner's personal bubbles. Her face put up its guard again, but it was considerably softer around the edges of her face. Yang was starting to like this woman.

_**Mithril Safehouse, same time.**_

Vikowitz and Walker both watched Ana sprawled out on the couch with the television on from the adjacent kitchen. She was behaving very un-Ana like. Her lack of energy aside, she hadn't even bothered to change the channel past the morning news. She hadn't touched the X-box either. She did have this look though, like something was weighing heavily on her mind. The two former shooters exchanged glances before getting up and parting ways. Walker retreated to his room to make that call about Yang while Vikowitz went to go keep Ana company.

Vikowitz sat down in one of the recliners by the entertainment area and watched the news, glancing at Ana from time to time. She was off in her own head right now, something he had never seen her do before. He wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not, but he left it alone for now.

In her head, Ana replayed last night's events and felt horrible about her self. She was embarrassed by her own naïve notion that she could listen to his problems and handle them. She never thought of herself as being naïve, she knew horrible things happened in the world but to hear it in such stark detail was something else entirely.

Mostly she felt awful for the thoughts she had that he was a monstrous baby killer. Sure he'd killed children, but they were doing terrible things to someone, and that made them evil right? But how could children behave like that? She could simply not wrap her mind around the concept of children doing those things. What causes people, let alone children, to do those things?

She told herself he must have had no choice, she couldn't imagine a face like his mercilessly slaying children, even ones who'd committed such atrocities. She knew there had to be something under there, a gentler side. It had been there once before, she could read it in the lines of his face. She remembered the way he had blushed when they first met. Monsters don't blush, right?


	5. Forgiveness

_Whew, sorry it took so long for this latest update. New Years and Christmas were crazy, took me forever to hide all those bodies. Throw in a healthy dose of procrastination and there you go. Anyway, as an apology, I have decided to upload TWO WHOLE CHAPTERS! Go me. Obviously I don't own any of the rights to any of this. Hope you enjoy._

**_Safehouse_**

It was later in the day that she approached him. He was outside her bedroom window, installing a camera mount under the lip of the roof that would presumably allow him to see anyone approaching from the backyard. This was the fifth perimeter camera he had installed today.

Yang heard the window beside him slide open, looking down to see Ana leaning out and looking up at him with a shy expression. She was wearing a tight blue tank top today that left no question as to whether she was wearing a bra or not. The view from Yang's step ladder was magnificent.

Neither of them spoke for awhile, the two fidgeting nervously before Yang resumed his work, clearing his throat. "Hi Ana…"

Ana smiled a little brighter as she saw the color on his cheeks, renewing her courage. "Hello there Yang…got a minute?" She bit her lower lip hopefully.

Yang had been about to say no until he noticed the anxious look in her fiery eyes. Slowly he pulled his hands away from the mount, fidgeting with the screwdriver in his right hand as he tried and failed to meet that intense gaze of hers. Her eyes were so full of life, so unlike the eyes he beheld those few times he had had the courage to look in the mirror.

Unsure, he replied, "Sure."

Hiding a sigh of relief, Ana matted her lips and perched herself on the lip of the window and braced her back against the window sill, folding her arms under her breasts. She could tell she was making him uncomfortable, but she forged on.

"I wanted to apologize for the other night. I guess I must seem pretty naïve to you now, huh?..." She smiled sadly, taking a deep breath before she continued.

"I was scared of you, you know? After what you told me…but after I thought about it, the more my eyes opened." She tried to catch his gaze, but his eyes remained elusive.

"I don't think you are a bad person…" she shook her head and quickly corrected herself. "No, I know you are not a bad person. Otherwise…you would not be so saddened by what happened." She bit her lip again, holding herself a little tighter as she looked into her room with a soft blush on her tan cheeks. "Uhm...so I'm not afraid of you. And even if you won't forgive yourself…I forgive you. I just want you to know that." She slowly lifted her head and looked up at him with a soft, kind smile. Her eyes simmered warmly as he managed to drag his gaze up to hers. His hands stopped playing with the screwdriver.

It was like a door simply opened in him and a maelstrom of emotions flooded his being. And suddenly he knew everything. It was so simple he cracked a smile. That was what he had been looking for all along. The whole time, everyone had simply pitied him, felt sorry for what he had done and what had happened.

They tried all the assurances. It wasn't your fault, there was nothing you could do, and it was just a shitty deal. He felt he could never forgive himself for what he had done. And deep down he knew this was true…but here was someone who had spoken directly to him, said aloud the words, "I forgive you."

And for some reason, her forgiveness meant the world to him. While she was still rather entranced by the honest, emotional smile breaking through that crumbling wall he'd built around himself, Yang was reaching out and leaning towards her. They both seemed to realize what was happening at the same time, their eyes widening and their cheeks coloring.

But after only a brief hesitation, the two started to drift closer together. Hearts beat rapidly in chests, eyelids closing. Nervous breathes touching skin as their lips began to approach one another.

And then the ladder, overbalanced, tipped and sent Yang sliding right by her to the grass below. "Huh?!" They both exclaimed, both of them registering surprise on the other's face just before Yang hit the dirt.

As he lay on the grass with Ana looking down at him, the two began to laugh. It was a healthy, lovely sound.

_**Two weeks later…**_

"Ana. Ana, wake up." Yang said, giving the girl a shake. The teenager responded by mumbling incoherently and hiding deeper in the sheets. Yang sighed and gave her shoulder another soft shake.

"Ana, you have practice."

She slowly rolled onto her back and opened her eyes. Better than any cup of coffee, seeing his smile filled her with life, and she began to smile too. She still felt he wasn't one hundred percent back on his feet, there were still some shadows, but there was a definite remarkable improvement.

"Mmn. Hey…" She murmured sleepily.

"Hey." He replied. He was already dressed in his summer suit, ready to drive her to the Tennis courts. Even though he wasn't entirely recovered, he still had the warmest, best smile she had ever seen.

She stretched out like a cat. A really well endowed cat. Averting his gaze with a blush, Yang coughed politely as he rose to his feet and opened her shades before turning back and offering her his hands. She took them, and he helped pull her up to a sit.

"C'mon." He ruffled her hair afterwards, giving her the giggles. As she climbed out of bed, he left to join the team in the dining room to plan out the day.

The detail had come together nicely under Yang's support and Walker's willingness. They still weren't trained, but they had a good grasp of theory and everyone had gone to the firing range to refresh themselves with their firearms. Walker and Vik were a little rusty, but they polished up in no time. Price and Veronika needed help, but at least now they could say they had fired their weapons recently. Yang had even showed Ana how to shoot, and while she had been scared at first, she took naturally to it.

"We'll use ERV two as primary, hi Yang, and ERV five as secondary and ERV six as final. Yang, Price, and I will be with Ana. Vik, Veronika, you're trail." There were nods all around, and Yang joined them as he moved up against the table.

An ERV is an Emergency Rendezvous. It's a set point to evacuate the "Principle", or VIP under protection, to after breaking out of an attack. It's also a rendezvous point for the detail should they become separated. Incase circumstances denied the first ERV, two backup ERV's were in place.

"We take her to practice than to her appointment at R&D. Route three practice, route three appointment. Return route six. Primary radio is frequency two, secondary is three. Clear?" Walker looked around, but everyone had this down to a routine now.

"Sounds good." Yang spoke up. Everyone looked at the re-born operator, grins and soft smiles to be had by all. None of them knew what had happened to bring about this change. Although they had a feeling it had something to do with Ana from the way the two of them behaved. Regardless, the change was welcomed by all and as a whole the morale of the detail had risen noticeably.

The team set their radios before breaking up to do their final preparations while Ana was still getting herself ready. Yang himself went back to his room and drew his pistol from his holster. He removed the magazine from the weapon and took the round from the chamber. He took out his two spare magazines and unloaded the whole bunch. This would ease the magazine springs. Most misfeeds occur in the magazine, rather than the firearm itself.

So Yang took out three empty magazines, loaded all three and put them in their respective places. He racked the slide on his pistol, dropped the mag out again, refilled it, and put it back in the grip. Now he had thirteen rounds plus one in the spout. The safety of the P7 kept him free of the worry of an accidental discharge as he slid the weapon back into his driving holster, which was tilted forward in preparation for his duties.

He checked himself fearlessly in the mirror, smiling gently at what he saw.

_Not yet, but close enough._


	6. Charlie Foxtrot

"You look tired Ana." Yang smiled in the review mirror at the drained teenager riding in the back. They had just picked her up from her three hour appointment at the R&D facility.

"I am tired." She yawned.

Yang just nodded, leaving it at that. He could have asked why she was tired, and what she was doing with R&D, but that was all need to know. And he, apparently, had no need to know. However, he trusted the Captain's judgment so it didn't bother him all that much. It was just a passing curiosity.

Five minutes out and on the border of the warehouse district where the R&D facility was located, the hairs on the back of Yang's neck stood up. He didn't know why, but something was making him sit up straight and take note of his surroundings. Veronika and Vikowitz were in the trail vehicle today with Walker in the backseat with Ana in Yang's car. Price babysat the house.

The intersection was a double lane, with only four other cars present, two of which were around the detail. The white van next to Yang bore a logo proudly proclaiming high speed internet. At the back of the detail behind Veronika and Vik was a green land rover.

Wary, Yang flipped his turn signal on and waited for the light to change. That was when the van next to him gunned it and swept across the front of the Taurus, cutting them off. Behind the detail, the Land Rover slammed up against the rear of the trailing Taurus, pushing its bumper up against the back of the main car, causing the occupants to jostle in their seat belts.

"Ambush! Ambush!" Yang, Walker and Vikowitz exclaimed simultaneously over the radio.

Behind Yang, Walker pushed a screaming Ana to the floor and covered her with his body. As men began to emerge from the assailing vehicles, the former CIA commando drew his very American, very reliable, very powerful, custom Colt 1911.

The back of the van in front of Yang disgorged two men in white overalls and balaclavas. One of them carried a shotgun while the other held an MP-5 at the low-ready position. They moved quickly and efficiently, marking them as a couple of professionals. Yang had a feeling that shotgun was for breaching the armored passenger window.

"Contact front!"

"He's gonna breach the window!" Yang heard Vikowitz say, causing him to check his rearview mirror.

"Fucking hold still Ana!" Walker said behind Yang, as Ana panicked and tried to get out from under the big American.

"Sonofabitchomigodshitshitshit-" she started into Russian at that point.

At the rear of the detail, two more men, identical to the first pair hopped out of the SUV and were coming up on both sides of the trail vehicle.

"Contact rear!"

"Reverse! Reverse!"

Yang shifted into first gear and rammed the van ahead of him, pushing it forward a little. Behind him, Ana screamed at the sudden, violent movement. Further behind him, Veronika was reversing into the Land Rover, giving it a nudge that startled the two men who had just exited the vehicle. However, the Taurus couldn't push the Land Rover back as the enemy driver stepped on the gas.

Yang was still bouncing back in his seat belt when he put his car in reverse, ramming back against the second Taurus and causing the two gunmen attempting to breach the vehicle to once again back away. The combined engines of both Taurus' forced the blocking Land Rover back. The cursing in Polish and Russian confirmed that both his teammates were alive and pissed. Walker was repeatedly telling Yang to, "Go!"

"On me! On me!" Yang cried into the radio as cranked the wheel over to the left and shifted gears.

The Taurus lurched forward and into the rear of the front left tire of the Van. Yang kept his foot on the gas, slowly forcing his way along the bumper and out of the blockade. Behind him, the second Taurus followed, giving the van another good hit as it passed by, disabling the front left wheel of the enemy vehicle.

Yang tore down the street, watching as the gunmen began to pile back into their vehicles to give chase. Behind him, Walker alerted Yang to the arrival of more cars, as a Honda and a Saturn came in off side streets just behind Vik and Veronika.

The four cars raced after one another towards the freeway, elevated on its concrete supports in the distance. A check in the mirror told Yang that this was getting out of hand, seeing the Land Rover way back behind them and resuming the chase. Yang needed to even the odds a little.

"Car two, break right and stop!" Yang said, and the trail car pulled aside to give Yang a clear shot at the civic.

"Brace yourselves!" He yanked the emergency break and stopped the Ford dead in its tracks. The Civic couldn't stop in time, and smashed directly into the rear of the Taurus with the wrenching sound of tearing metal, throwing the heavy Ford forward a few feet and leaving the front of the Civic in ruins, steam curling from under the crushed hood. Yang was thrown forward in his seatbelt and Walker bounced off the back of Yang's chair. Ana was able to sit up for a moment, curing hysterically in Russian until Walker wrestled her back under his body. Shaken, Yang stole a look in his rearview and saw the damage he'd done to the Honda.

He was confident he had taken the Honda out of the race, but the Subaru was still in the game. It flew past the crash site and made a screeching 180 degree turn about seventy feet ahead of them. Just as it was about to head back their way, Vikowitz and Veronika opened fire from behind the cover of their doors, having parked along the right hand side of the street with their MP5k's blazing.

"Go! We'll keep 'um pinned down!" Vikowitz said between bursts.

Sparks and splinters flew off the Subaru, causing the occupants to hunker down as Yang switched gears again, tearing the rear of the Taurus out of the mangled Civic's engine compartment. Veronika and Vikowitz ceased fire as Yang gunned across their line of sight, opening fire on the Subaru immediately afterwards to keep it pinned down.

Yang's racing heart was torn between his duty and the abandonment of his teammates. However, he knew he had to accomplish the mission, so said a small prayer for Vik and Veronika and pushed the pedal even harder to the floor. Another Land Rover joined the first as both came in behind Yang when he passed the next intersection.

"Shit, Yang we got another on our tail!"

"What the fuck is going on?!…" Ana said from under Walker's bulk.

Yang confirmed the presence of the new brown SUV behind them, cursing as he shifted gears and brought the Taurus to a gallop. Glancing around for other threats, he saw a sedan speeding on the street parallel to their right, keeping time with the Taurus. As Yang hit the T-section ahead, banking the Taurus around the honking, screeching truck to his left, he realized he was about to fall into a trap.

The road Yang was on would take him to a corner street. That street connected with the one the sedan was on. The cars behind Yang were herding him directly towards that turn.

"Son of a bitch…"

Yang gritted his teeth and willed the car to go faster, hoping to reach the turn before the other vehicle. He saw the corner ahead and saw, through the gaps in the fence around the warehouse at this corner, that the other car was racing to cut him off. In fact, it looked like it was going to ram them…

Yang didn't even hesitate.

"Hang on!" He warned as he hit the turn at the same time as the other vehicle.

Yang could actually see the faces in the sedan as it bore down on the side of the Taurus, both figures in the front seat braced for impact. Yang shifted and yanked the emergency brake while cranking the wheel to the right. The Taurus pivoted on its front just past the Sedan, its tail end twisting away, barely clearing the front of the Sedan like a matador's flag. The other vehicle attempted to turn, but the Land Rover had gotten overzealous, slowing in preparation for the trap but not enough to stop it from colliding with the other vehicle as the trap failed.

The two attacking vehicles came together in a catastrophic crash, the Land Rover's rear wheels leaving the ground a moment as the Sedan flipped on its side away from the SUV, the rear actually bouncing off the back of Yang's Taurus as it sailed into the corner of the street, getting hung up on a fence. The last Land Rover managed to come to a halt, its brakes smoking as it pulled up just short of its disabled twin.

Without bothering to check what was happening, Yang gave the Taurus a kick in the rear, the sound of his tires reminding the functional Land Rover's occupants that they were still in a chase. Behind Yang, Walker managed to stop being impressed enough by the young Corporal's driving skills to alert him to this fact.

"Still one left!"

Yang confirmed this in his mirror, weaving in and out of the next cross street in a feint. The Land Rover was too far back to fall for it. It would seem they were wary of Yang pulling another swoop and stop. Yang considered his options. The freeway was the safe zone, he had a feeling the other vehicle wouldn't dare chase them so openly. He knew he that from his current location, there was only one on ramp in close proximity. However, whoever their opponents were, they had the resources to field a rather large force to come after them. Did they have enough manpower left to set up a blockade at the ramp?

Yang decided to gamble on the idea that the enemy had run out of bodies, and took his next left. As he slowed into the turned, the Land Rover slowed as well, reaching the light as Yang made the other street. As he did, he hit the grenade button on the console. The two grenades fell to the street one in front and one behind. Yang heard the front bounce against the undercarriage of the vehicle as he drove over it. Two seconds later, both grenades exploded in clouds of white smoke.

The instant smoke screen took the Land Rover off guard. The smoke was already thinning when the SUV broke through, the two occupants finding them selves driving alongside the slowing Taurus. With lightning reflexes, Yang braked and turned into the other vehicle. He timed the pit maneuver perfectly. Catching the SUV in the rear side as it passed, causing it to turn perpendicular to the Taurus, smashing its flank across the ford's bumper. Yang stepped on the gas again, his speed barely wavering as he pushed the SUV along the front of his car.

He could see the panicked expressions on the faces of the occupants as he stomped on the brakes, letting the SUV slide off and flip over onto its side, skidding the remaining feet between it and the light post, wrapping itself about the hard pole in a spectacular fashion.

Yang drove off as if nothing had happened, viewing the freeway on-ramp ahead. It was clear of any vehicles.

"Veronika and Vik are being jammed." He pointed out. Walker nodded.

"I figured as much." Radio jamming had been ineffective due to both the superior nature of Mithril equipment and the team's proximity to one another. However, with distance between the two teams, long range communication was no longer possible. Walker and Yang could only hope that their teammates were alright.

"They wanted Ana alive, they didn't fire a shot the whole time. They were professional's too, they knew what they were doing." Yang pointed out again.

"Yeah, we're in deep shit. Something big is going down, that was a lot of guys for a clandestine operation. They wanted her bad. I'll give Price a call, tell him to bug out, then call my bosses and tell them we need to Evac, now."

"Can you not talk about me like I'm not here?!" Ana shouted, puffing angrily as she muscled her way out from under Walker.

"Sorry." The two men said at the same time.

"…What happened back there? Why are they after me?!" Her voice and figure was shaking, and Yang wanted to comfort her but Walker did it for him.

"Shh, its okay. Calm down, everything is gonna be alright Ana." Walker put his pistol away, reaching out to pull Ana into his arms. She resisted at first, tears in her eyes as she started to come down from the adrenaline. She was gonna crash hard, Yang saw.

"Wh...where's Vik and Veronika? Where are they?..." She asked.

"They're fine, they'll meet us at the rendezvous point. We're gonna get you someplace safe and then we're all gonna meet up and get out of here alright?" He stroked her head, holding her tight as her trembling increased.

Yang swallowed as he heard her crack in the back seat and began to sob loudly in Walker's chest. Yang's heart went out to her, his emotions making it a little hard to concentrate on the job at hand.

"Walker…" He started, but Walker cut him off.

"I know, I'm taking care of it now…" The older man pulled out the satellite phone and dialed Price, still holding the crying Ana.

They hit the freeway and all was quiet but for Ana's sobbing and the passing of cars.

"Price isn't answering…" Walker said, and both Operators met each other's gaze in the mirror. It didn't need to be said. They had hit the house while the team was away.

Price was dead.


	7. Regroup

_Bah, completely forgot to include a disclaimer the first time. But yeah, don't own the property, etc. Also, much thanks to those who reviewed and a big thank you to Dark Tabby for the excellent and helpful criticism. I hope I can meet your expectations. This chapter might seem pretty dull compared to the last, but it -is- an important chapter. Hope you'll like it, but I'll settle for "Bear with it". _

After using the freeway to put some distance between them and the foiled ambush, Yang took an off-ramp and avoided the main streets. The last thing they needed was to get pulled over for busted tail lights. Finding the nearest free parking garage, they ditched the Taurus.

By now, Ana had calmed down a little but she was starting to fade. Adrenaline withdrawal was kicking in and she wasn't used to that like Yang and Walker were. They let her rest against the wall of the garage while the two men took care of business.

They managed to pry open the busted trunk and salvage what they could, finding a duffle bag with a tire iron, jack and socket wrench; a Mithril quality med kit; and a road assistance kit. They emptied the duffle and stuffed the MP5's and extra magazines from the backseat compartment of the Taurus into it. The contents of the road assistance kit got dumped in alongside the guns, since the red and white packaging stood out. The Mithril kit they could carry as it came in a black and blue hiking backpack.

After giving the car a quick wipe down, they locked it and threw the keys into a trashcan one level down as they descended to the street, half carrying Ana with them. Once outside, they walked two blocks then caught a Taxi to the nearest department store where Walker purchased six pre-paid phones, cash. They then took two more cab rides before walking the rest of the way to ERV two

ERV two was an empty lot beside a tacky looking motel, the lot itself surrounded by a chain link fence with black tarp hiding the interior. They had gotten inside the fence through a vehicle access point in the alley next to the motel. Inside the lot were the remains of a cancelled billboard construction. Two large steel pipes were at one end of the lot and the billboard's unassembled catwalks rested not far from there. It was here that they decided to rest.

Facing the gap in the fence, Yang put the pack up against one of the catwalk frames. Without even asking, Ana sat down and lay against it. She passed out almost immediately, leaving Walker and Yang to watch over her.

"I'm gonna let my bosses know what's up then I'll hand the phone off to you. You get in touch with Tactical." Walker said, waving the satellite phone at Yang as he walked past, moving off a bit so he didn't wake Ana up. Not that Yang believed she would, having crashed so hard. While Walker talked, Yang took up a watch facing the vehicle entrance point but stole glances at Ana's sleeping face.

You hear it all the time, but Ana truly had the face of an Angel. A face he was lucky enough to see every morning when he went to wake her up. Sometimes he would even let her sleep a few more minutes while he watched. He knew he shouldn't, or couldn't even, but he did it anyway.

He still didn't know how he felt about Ana. There was most definitely something there and he was sure Ana felt something as well. For him, it was a unique feeling, one he had never had before. It wasn't love, at least not in the romantic sense he thought. It didn't feel that way, not that he didn't find her attractive she was most certainly a beautiful young woman. And there was that little near-kiss incident, but he chocked that one up to emotional duress.

He wasn't put off by her age. Seventeen was old enough and she was a very mature girl. But Yang had been in love before, or at least he thought he had. This was a different feeling. He was grateful beyond words to her for saving him from that dark place. With her help, he felt himself slowly healing. He would always have scars, but she was bringing more and more of his old self out the more time he spent with her.

Loyalty or protectiveness maybe? It was just too hard for him to describe. Maybe it was a mix of love, loyalty and protectiveness. He closed down the intense feelings and emotional turmoil he had for her, turning his attention back to his duties and putting his game face on while Walker finished talking. When he did, the American walked back with phone in hand.

"I let our station chief here in Australia know that Ana was okay. There's been nothing about the chase on the news. Someone with a lot of clout was behind this. They probably had to call in some serious favors to cover this up whoever they are…we can't reach the R&D facility. I think whoever is behind this, hit them too. I have a theory but I don't like the sound of it, because if it's true we are in deep doo-doo."

Yang had a feeling he and Walker were thinking the same thing.

Mithril had a tenuous relationship with a number of the countries. These relationships were more along the lines of communication, allowing Mithril to receive and make requests pertaining to those countries. Australia was one such country with an open line to Mithril. However, it was no secret that those governments involved with Mithril were jealous and eager to get their hands on some of the technology Mithril possessed.

"The Australian government or someone with a lot of influence in it is after us." The Korean stated calmly. Walker nodded, tapping the phone against his palm.

"Yeah…everything fits. The number of men, the way they moved…SAS maybe."

"A troop or two, pretty big for something sensitive like this. They aren't taking any chances." Yang replied, sucking on the inside of his lip. He wasn't looking forward to tangling with almost half a squadron of Australia's finest.

Modeled after the British SAS, the Australian Special Air Service had a similar command structure in that there were three squadrons, each squadron having five to six troops, each troop a fifteen man unit. These men are tough, highly trained professional soldiers. Thinking back, the only reason Yang had probably managed to escape against such odds was due to his superior driving skills and the lesser offensive driving skills of his opponents.

This brought up a frightening thought as Veronika and Vikowitz had both stayed behind to cover their retreat. Vikowitz was a good shooter and Veronika seemed to have a cool head on her shoulders, but neither had a chance if they had stayed and fought it out with the SAS.

_I hope they're alright…_

Yang shook his head quickly. _No. No time for that. _He looked back at Walker as the veteran agent spoke.

"If it is the Aussies, they probably want whatever Mithril had in that R&D facility and they want Ana because they've seen her frequently entering and exiting the place…but then again…" Walker's musing trailed off. Yang picked it up.

"…That was a rather large pursuit team for a target of opportunity like Ana…I think they intentionally went after her…" The two men made eye contact then looked at Ana's sleeping face. What could the Aussie's want with their Angel? Then again, why was Ana visiting the R&D facility in the first place?

The question was one that every team member had thought about but being in Mithril meant being intimate with the words, "need to know." So while they thought about it from time to time, none of them had ever asked Ana or their superiors why it was that this teenage girl visited a R&D facility for several hours, three times a week. Walker and Yang made eye contact again. While they both had questions the answers would have to wait.

"Call Tactical." Walker said, deciding to put the "who and why" on hold for now.

"Yes sir." Yang held his hand out. Walker put the phone into it and gestured for Yang to take a walk while Walker watched for any signs of Vikowitz or Veronika.

Pacing over to where Walker had stood, Yang dialed the emergency contact number he had memorized and listened to the phone go through its procedure. A woman's voice answered the call.

"Go scramble." Yang said as he punched in the scrambler code that would mask the phone call. On the other end, the operator did the same.

"Scrambled." The woman replied. "Confirm identity."

"Uruz 9, B3120. Call code, "Go long." He paused, waiting for the woman to confirm his identity and calling code. She came back after a brief delay. "Confirmed."

"TDD-1, urgent message, priority one."

"Connecting."

There was more data noise as the call was rerouted through satellites, leaving a dummy trail before being caught by a Mithril satellite and filtered to the Tuatha De Danaan in the Atlantic Ocean.

"Corporal?"

Yang sighed in relief. The Captain's voice had never been sweeter.

"Captain. We have an emergency. Our detail and the R&D facility have been attacked. Principle is secure but the detail is scattered with two MIA's and one probable KIA. We made a lot of noise but there's been nothing on civilian news or law enforcement radio. Whoever it is, they're covering it up…and ma'am, I'm only speculating but I think the Australian government may be involved in some way." Yang let that sink in. The line was quiet for awhile before the Captain's voice returned.

"Understood Corporal. We've just received a similar report from Intelligence, though nothing about the Australian government was mentioned. We're going to work with Intelligence in Australia to get you and the principle out of there. If the Australians have something to do with this, we have to tread carefully. Can you evade detection?" Yang found himself again in awe of their young Captain's professionalism. He smiled a little as he replied confidently,

"Yes ma'am."

"Alright then. We'll contact you on this line, so keep it open. Otherwise, check in at this time tomorrow."

"Yes ma'am, I understand." Yang cupped the phone to his shoulder and synchronized his watch.

"And Corporal…be careful." Yang blushed a little at her words, nodding into space affirmatively.

"Yes ma'am, thank you ma'am." He heard the line go silent, and he did the same on his end. Turning around, he walked back to where Walker was waiting.

"I'll check in tomorrow with Tactical, they said they'll work with Intel on getting us out of here." Walker nodded. Yang paused briefly before speaking again.

"You didn't tell your people of the possible involvement of the Australian government."

"…we both know we were likely compromised from the inside. And we both know it was probably someone from Intel. If there is a leak, I don't want it to seem like we're on to them yet, plus we have no evidence of the Australian government actually having a hand in anything." the agent said quietly. Yang took a breath and nodded, putting his hands on his hips.

"Do you trust the station chief here?" The Corporal asked of Agent Walker. Even one ally at the management level of the local Intelligence desk would be helpful. The man seemed to consider the idea that his immediate superior in Australia had leaked information to the locals. Finally, he shook his head.

"I don't want to take any chances. We'll need some supplies and funds. I have a dead drop that Intel doesn't know about with some cash we can use. I'll hit up the drop in the morning. We'll wait awhile longer to see if Vik and Veronika show up. We hole up for the night in a motel or something, wait for contact and plan our next move." The spook was rubbing his chin as he said all this.

Yang reviewed the plan and their options in his head, looking for any input or suggestions he could offer. Finding none, he nodded and assumed his sentry duties while Walker focused on figuring out their situation.

Anna woke up at this time. Her eyes were still puffy from all the crying and she had those moist sniffles you get whenever you cry. Looking around, her face fell as she still didn't see either Veronika or Vik.

"Where's Vik and Veronika? Where are they?" She asked as she got up unconsciously straying toward Yang's side. Walker and Yang shared a brief look before Walker turned his eyes to Ana.

"We're still waiting for them." Yang knew it was useless to try and tell Ana a lie like, "They're fine and on their way." She was a smart kid and was mature enough to understand the truth of things, even if she was having trouble coping with it emotionally.

Ana swallowed and nodded, her body listing towards Yang and resting against his arm. Normally he would have told her not to but he allowed it this time. He felt her palm in his and their fingers entwine. Yang glanced at the teen before giving her hand a comforting squeeze, and together the three of them waited.

**_Two hours later..._**

All three of them let out a collective sigh of relief as Veronika and Vikowitz arrived. The two of them slipped through the fence and began to walk over to the three. Vikowitz appeared to be in some discomfort as he approached, and all three noted the tearing in Vik's suit that revealed the bulletproof vest under it.

"Vik!" Ana shouted and ran over to the two weary Europeans with Yang and Walker in tow. Vik lifted a hand as they ran forward, wincing.

"I'm fine, vest caught it." He assured them, opening the rip in his shirt to show that his vest had indeed caught two 9mm slugs. The three of them remained worried anyway. While Ana watched, Walker checked under Vikowitz's vest, much to Vik's discomfort. "Ow!"

Walker stepped back with another sigh of relief. "Just some bad bruising, you'll be fine. Damn is it great to see you guys…" Walker said, grinning despite himself. Yang smiled softly at the sight, catching Vik's eye and nodding approvingly at him. Despite being older than Yang, Vikowitz felt proud to be acknowledged by the elite soldier. He grinned at the Corporal and then went back to assuring Ana that they were alive and well.

It was Veronika who broached the question as she looked about.

"Where is Price?..." Instantly, Walker, Yang and Ana's faces darkened. Walker just quietly shook his head in response. Veronika bowed her head a moment while Vik turned his head with a disgusted expression. Yang matted his lips and summoned a breath before speaking.

"We need to get moving." He felt a spike of anger from the others as they found his words to be callous and cold considering that they had just lost a friend and comrade. But they knew that Yang was right.

"Taxi?" Vikowitz suggested. Walker approved with a nod.

"But first let's steal a phonebook from a phone booth around here. We'll split up. Half of us will go buy some essentials, food and water. The other half will secure us somewhere to stay."

"What's your ammo sitting at you two?" He looked at Vik and Veronika. Vik grimaced a bit.

"I have half a clip left for my 9mm, Veronika is dry. We had to ditch the HK's along with the car." It was Yang's turn to grimace.

"What about transportation?" Veronika said, bringing up a valid point. Eventually they would need some kind of vehicle.

"I have a few thoughts on that but first let's get settled…" Walker talked and the detail listened. Yang suddenly felt a tug on his sleeve, drawing his attention to Ana. She was looking a little dejected, like she was being ignored. He cursed himself for being inconsiderate like that, especially since she needed attention at the moment. Normally…well, before Sierra Leone, he had been a much more socially conscious person. This oversight confirmed that he hadn't bounced back from his ordeal quite yet.

Yang put his arm around Ana's shoulders and pulled her against his side. She turned into him and tucked her face in his shoulder while hugging him around the chest. Seeing this, everyone else grew quiet as they watched Ana and Yang's exchange. Blushing a little at the expressions on his comrades faces, Yang put his hand to the back of her head and brought his other arm around to hold her.

_We'll protect you Ana…_

Yang looked up at of the four remaining members of the Intelligence detail and they all shared a resigned but determined smile. It was a silent oath between them, nothing needed to be said. The all turned their gazes to the girl hiding her face in Yang's chest and swore that no harm would come to her while they still drew breath.

_I'll protect you…_


	8. Escape and Evade

**I apologize for disappearing like that, sometimes life hits you and then writer's block and…yeah, lots of other excuses. Anyway here's the next chapter, reviews are appreciated and welcome, especially criticism. Just try and make it helpful. Also I obviously don't own anything from FMP except the original characters in this fic.**

The team regrouped at an independently owned motel in south Sydney. Like all independently owned motels it was L-shaped, flamboyantly colored, two stories tall and had a sign featuring the word, "Cable." They rented two adjacent rooms with double beds on the second floor, putting Ana and Veronika in one and the three men in the other.

With everyone in the girl's room, Walker brought everyone up to speed while they ate over gas station sandwiches and drinks. Ana was managing to stay awake and she was doing an admirable job of keeping herself together. She was scared, and even more so when Walker presented their theory about not only the possible intelligence leak, but the possibility of the Australian government having a hand in this.

When Walker was finished, the first thing everyone did was glance at Ana, which caused her to move closer to Yang's side. They quickly stopped once they noticed her discomfort, shifting their attentions to Walker again. Vikowitz spoke first.

"We'll need extraction sometime. If we're sure about a leak in Intel, let's go through Tactical instead. Yang, how long you figure it would take for Tactical to move?"

Yang rubbed his chin and chewed his lip for a moment before responding.

"The Filbalu would be the closest ship in the area, the Indian Ocean is their AO. The chance that the Australian government is involved is going to make things really difficult. Any extraction would have to be clandestine. The problem is clearance…" Yang's voice trailed off as he put his words together. "Shit…"

"What?" Walker asked.

"It depends on how badly Mithril wants Ana…do they want her bad enough to risk relations with the Australians? Otherwise, we may have to escape on our own." Yang finished with a sigh.

"Please don't tell me that…" Vikowitz groaned and rubbed his face with a hand.

Yang felt Ana squeeze his arm tight while the rest of the group took a moment of silence to digest what he had just said. Looking down at the redhead, Yang moved his arm around her shoulders and put his hand to the back of her head, tilting it against him.

Walker, as the leader, stepped up. "That's a worst case scenario. Let's plan for it while we wait for an update from Intel and Tactical. As it is, we should all grab some sleep while we can. We've had a long day…I'll take first watch."

_**6:30 AM, the following day.**_

_Laying still as a ston he kept his head down as low as possible while peering under the lip of his Ghillie suit's hood at what seemed like a whole battalion of RUF rebels getting stoned and committing acts of barbarism not six yards away from his position. Yang matted his lips and walked his gaze across the playing field. _

_The village was spread out over a gently sloping hill with a dirt road cutting the village in half going east to west towards Kono and Freetown, respectively. On the northern side of the road was a two story tavern/motel that probably doubled as a whore house. A town hall a little up the road from the tavern was flanked by a small church and a village market of sorts. On the southern side of the road and sloping towards the tree line were the thatch and sheet metal huts of the villagers themselves. _

_Yang could hear screaming and gunshots from inside the huts. And laughter._

_Tightening his grip on the MP-7A1, Yang ground his teeth and tried to reign in his emotions. The Sergeant Major had always told him to focus on the mission and not how it made him feel. It was incredibly hard to listen to this though, knowing that he could kill these bastards. But he couldn't do that and jeopardize the mission, not to mention he'd die in the process. Applying strict control to his breathing and mentally kicking his head back into the game, he made a quick situational assessment._

_There were four "Technicals", flatbeds trucks and vans sporting RPD and 12.7mm Machineguns nailed onto scratch built pintle mounts or directly into the roofs of the vehicles. Two ex-Sierra Leone army trucks were also present, having been filled way over recommended loading capacity with rebels. The rest of the force had apparently humped it here on foot. Firepower was standard Soviet Bloc weaponry, albeit aged. AK-47's and RPG-7's, a few man carried RPD machineguns. And the machetes they were wielding with glee as they murdered the villagers._

_Yang was horrified to see that the worst of the atrocities were being committed by the child soldiers of the RUF, the so called, "West Side Boys". Even among the countless child soldiers across the continent, the West Side Boys had a notorious reputation for unbridled cruelty. Yang could see several who'd erected a chopping block along the roadside and were busy lopping off the limbs of village women. _

_They were laughing and passing around a joint as they did. _

_Swallowing his own vomit Yang forced down the hatred and sadness that was mounting the more he was subjected to the evil of this god forsaken country. The Dark Continent was not just a poetic expression. Yang banked the coals of vengeance in his heart and bore his dark brown eyes into the tavern he'd seen RUF Lieutenant Jubei Loso enter. A former child soldier who'd hacked his way quite literally to the top, becoming one of current RUF leader Richard Untebe's top Lieutenants. Richard was his primary target and was waiting for his Lieutenant, Yang's secondary target, probably on the second floor._

_As usual, Mithril hadn't passed on much information concerning the background on this Op, as was custom for a fighting soldier, but Yang was an educated and intelligent fellow and had managed to piece together a pretty good guess as to why he was here and about to do what he was here to do. _

_Why was Mithril involved? Because the RUF is pure, living evil and deserved to die a slow and painful death for its crimes and the death of Untebe and Loso would cause major chaos in the RUF as his remaining Lieutenants went to war with each other to see who would become the new leader of the movement. By then, Mithril forces would be on station and hopefully do enough damage as to make a hole for the cowards at the UN to move peacekeepers into the area._

_Back to the present, Yang studied the target building, the tavern. It was the most likely place for the meeting, since Yang doubted either was a church going man and the Town hall didn't fit Untebe's style. The tavern was more like a one story rectangle with another story added above the western wing and overlooking the roof of the tavern. If Yang had to guess, the second story tower was where the rooms were located, most likely four rooms. All windows on the building pointed south outwards the street, a porch and saloon-esque swinging doors led into the tavern from that direction._

_The back of the building had another door that led to the bushes outside, frequented by the tavern patrons as an outdoor toilet. There was a staircase that climbed up the side of the building to a door on the tower side. Yang decided that would be his entry point._

_The sun hadn't yet fallen below the horizon but his window of opportunity would close soon. There was no telling how long the targets would be in place and there was little chance that Yang would catch both of his targets in one place again. He'd have to go now._

_Taking a deep breath, Yang flipped down the forward grip on his silenced weapon and scanned the area, looking for an opening. There were just so many rebels it was difficult to keep track. A smart operator would have just scrubbed the mission right here. But Yang had a burning coal of hate in his heart that demanded bloody satisfaction. And Yang could no longer ignore his heart._

_No way you live. No way._

_Rising out of the grass in his Ghillie suit like some kind of mythical jungle monster, Yang dashed in a low crouch across the fifteen yards of wide open space between his previous position and the base of the stairs. If he could just get to the stairs he'd have cover from the low wall that lined it, doubling as a railing. He reached the corner of the building and pressed himself up against it, his heart hammering in his chest. Any second now he expected to hear the alarm go up, his weapon raised and ready to take down whoever came to claim his head. But after checking his six and around the corner, he realized he'd actually made it._

_Sighing quietly in relief, Yang threw back the hood of his Ghillie suit and readied his weapon. Climbing up slowly and keeping as low as he could to avoid being seen over the wall covering the stairs. Finally reaching the top, Yang turned his forearm over and let his weapon hang so he could tap the PDA strapped to his inner wrist with a gloved finger. Extending a smaller fiber optic wire from the PDA itself, he slipped it under the door and scanned the room beyond, the image being broadcast onto the screen._

_He couldn't believe his luck today as he saw both targets enter the room, which had red walls and candles for lighting and a single, tattered mattress on a rusty frame in the center of the room. Another door led off into what he presumed was another bedroom, and both men while talking entered this second room and closed the door behind them._

_Unfortunately, as Yang's luck flipped, two armed thugs entered in behind them, remaining in the room Yang was watching. Both men flanked the doorway leading to the second room, which allowed them to cover the other two entrances._

_Damn…this is going to get messy._

_Licking his lips nervously, Yang retracted the cable and hefted his weapon again. He'd have to be fast and accurate. The door in front of yang opened into the room and toward the door leading into the tavern, which meant that Yang wouldn't be able to see them for the time it took for the door to either swing all the way open or for Yang to clear the doorway._

_Crouching, Yang checked the door and found it unlocked. Steadying his breathing, there was nothing he could do about the tension in his body and mind, but room clearing required more than just good shooting skills and tactics. He had to have complete control of his body and keep himself calm under the intense pressure of CQB. Scan breath, scan breath...Yang turned the handle and shouldered the door open, bursting into the room and moving from the knees down in a combat shuffle._

_Things slowed down as adrenaline poured into his veins, Yang rounding the doorway while it was still swinging open. He saw the surprised expressions on both men's faces at the green and black painted demon in jungle drag that had just rushed into the room. In that split second of surprise, Yang drilled the man on the right with a three round burst that was tight enough to utterly destroy the man's heart. Shuffling forward towards the door they were guarding, Yang tracked his weapon left as the other man began to lift his AK. Putting his front sight on the bodyguard, Yang serviced him with another burst, never breaking stride. This one wasn't as tight as the other, all three rounds more or less stitching the man across the chest as Yang swept the weapon over. _

_He put another burst into the man's head to make sure he was down, never breaking stride as he reared up and kicked in the doorway leading to the adjacent room._

_Untebe was 5'6 and thin with sunken cheeks, and had the looks of a heroin addict. He wore two belts of 7.62x39mm across his chest, probably mimicking Rambo. It looked ridiculous on his heroin ravaged body. He was wearing a purple vest and yellow cotton pants, also probably American media inspired. He also had a self inflicted scar on his chest that read: RUF. He was sitting on a chair against the northeastern corner of the room behind a small table while Loso leaned against the wall in front of Yang._

_Loso was faster to react, going for his pistol immediately but Yang was faster, the MP-7 whispering 4.6mm into the arms dealer's body, folding him over on his side. Untebe managed to get off part of a cry before the MP-7 whispered again, turning the bastard's face to jelly._

_Yang kept scanning and made sure the room was clear before pulling out an explosive charge from the waist pack on his hip and chucking it on the floor next to Loso who Yang shot again in the head to make sure he was dead. Leaving the room, Yang dropped another charge by the door leading out into the tavern while making for the door he'd entered through._

"_Rot in hell you piece of shit." He breathed as he ducked around the doorway and down the stairs again. Staying low, Yang dashed back across the open space, managing to make it into the bush unseen once again._

_In the safety of the tree line, Yang pulled out the detonator linked to the charges and snapped the safety off. He hit the clacker twice, causing the entire second floor of the tavern to explode and collapse in on it self. The weak to begin with structure just crumbled under the shock of the charges, crushing anyone who happened to be inside. _

_As the alarm went up and random gunfire sprayed everything in sight, Yang was already fading back into the jungle and making for the extraction point in the next gorge._

Yang awoke drenched in his own sweat, heart hammering in his chest as he breathed hotly through his nose. It took him a moment to realize he was staring at the ceiling and that the cool, hard item in his hand was his cocked P7. Swallowing, he eased his grip and heard the weapon decock, glancing over at the clock on the bedside table. 5:30 am. Past the table and in the bed across from Yang, Vikowitz softly snored. With a sigh, Yang got up from his drenched mattress and made his way to the bathroom, closing the door quietly behind him before flicking on the lights.

The miserable image in the mirror in front of him brought forth another sigh. Resting his pistol on the ledge of the sink, he washed his face and took a second look.

_Better._

_**8:30 AM, Motel.**_

The next morning they split up again. After sharing a breakfast of leftovers from last night's gas station meal, Walker and Vikowitz left to clean out Walker's dead drop, leaving Veronika and Yang with Ana at the motel.

All three were in the girl's room with the blinds closed, Ana in bed and watching the television, Veronika and Yang sitting at the room's coffee table. They were taking inventory with pen and stationary, everything the team had with them at the moment. The list was mostly composed of the things Yang and Walker had cleaned out from their Taurus.

"We have a lot of stuff here…too much stuff." Veronika smirked, picking up one of the elastic tie downs from the roadside assistance kit that had been hurriedly dumped into the duffle with the HK's.

"Never too much stuff." Yang replied and smiled at her across the table. That earned him a chuckle from the Russian, who put down the ties and sat back in her chair.

"You know a lot about improvisation?" She arched a slender brow questioningly in his direction. Yang shrugged, reading the chemicals on a can of tire sealant.

"Some." He said as he exchanged the can for jumper cables. As he held each item, he was letting his brain go to work on possible, unorthodox uses for it. There was certainly a lot to choose from, including the most vital of all tools: Duct Tape.

"We did, but something tells me you know much more." She murmured as she inspected the contents of the basic first aid kit from the road assistance bag.

"Maybe." Yang set the cables down and sat back with a sigh. He looked over at Ana and she caught his eye, flashing him a smile. He flashed a shy one back then looked down at the list of items he'd written. Veronika, who had watched the whole exchange, smirked.

"It isn't legal you know…" She said softly to hide her voice from Ana, and snickered when Yang blushed. "Don't worry, I won't tell. Although we all know, it's very obvious."

Yang nodded, having suspected that. "It won't be a problem." He replied, glancing up and making eye contact with the Russian. She held his gaze until she was convinced of his sincerity, then held it longer to remind him that she would keep an eye out regardless. The two then returned to their task.

When they finished, the two stretched themselves out in their chairs and groaned nearly simultaneously. This caused them to exchange chuckles and looks.

"Alright…" Yang rose to his feet and held out a hand, into which Veronika thrust her half of the inventory list.

"Have fun." She grinned. He scowled and went to lay on the second bed to read the completed list.

Naturally the moment he laid himself out on his back, Ana got up and sat next to him. Then she leaned against his abdomen and stole the lists from his hands, using him as a pillow while she peeked at the list. Under her, Yang frowned and looked a little uncomfortable.

"Wow, this is a lot of stuff." She mused, and in the background Veronika snickered. Yang stole a glance at his teammate to find her feigning ignorance about his situation.

_Bitch…_

"Is any of this really useful?" Ana mused, drawing Yang's attention.

"Not always by themselves, but yes." He snatched the list back, leaving the teenager pouting.

"Are you going to make a bomb from a cigarette or something?" She turned over on her stomach and laid her chest on top of his, her arms reaching up past his head to get the list. She knew what she was doing and she caught him blushing, which tickled her a bit. Although feeling that hard body of his was getting her a little hot under the collar as well.

Below her, Yang swallowed and cleared his throat, averting his eyes and trying not to think about the figure on top of him, specifically two firm weights on his chest. Figuring that the easiest way to get her off of him would be to give her the list, he returned it. Unfortunately he was wrong and she stayed there, balancing her elbows on his arms as she read the list.

"Ana…" he murmured, looking up at her.

"Hrm?...Yes Yang?" She looked down and smiled sweetly at the flustered soldier. About to open his mouth, the two of them stiffened as Veronika coughed from the coffee table. They shared a blush before Ana rolled away and to her feet, leaving the list on the bed.

"Er…I have to use the...bathroom." She mumbled, excusing herself. She disappeared into the bathroom, leaving Yang on his back and Veronika to mock him in Ana's absence.

"Not going to be a problem?" She said. Yang stayed on his back and sighed.

"Yeah…" He didn't sound too convinced himself.


End file.
